Draco's New Pet
by FallForMe MyDarkness
Summary: For years Hermione has crushed on a guitarist/back up vocalist from the muggle world she has only ever heard over the radio. What will happen when they meet face to face and he decides to wrap her around his finger? Dramione Draco x Hermione DM/HG UPDATED AU/follows some story line.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Nothing is mine, go on and adopt this so long as you keep it secret.. Keep it safe. JK kekeke

Oneshot, Dramione AU Harry Potter

Song: Thanks for the Memories [Fall Out Boy]

Scene: 3rd Year's Winter Ball

Hermione enters the Great Hall with Harry and Ron on either arm. It was going to be a fabulous night at the Winter Ball, the three had been looking forward to it all month.

Harry in he pre-used black and white wizards tux while Ron has on his frilly hand-me-down dress Robes. Hermione is donning a gorgeous gown she saved up for from the muggle world, hoping she won't stand out too much since it's not in a usual witchly style yet still manages to take the breaths away from witches and wizards alike as she elegantly places each silver heeled foot down one step at a time, not breaking a sweat. The tulle flows around from her hips like pure white feathers, reaching the floor at her back yet proudly displaying her shoes. The top of her bodice hangs off her shoulders with barely-there sleeves and silver lined white feathers covering up to her bosom, but not quite all of it. The whole of the dress is graced with beautiful silver, casting off a shimmer as if made with magic. Her hair is completely off her neck this time with large silver pins in her hair that resembles snow flakes, and small curls beautifully framing her face.

Ron breaks off to look for friends and refreshments and perhaps a dance partner, if he's lucky. There was no further connection to the trio besides friendship so Hermione smiles to his back as he departs. Harry does something much the same after seeing some of his favorite teachers he wishes to have a word with, leaving Hermione in the middle of the dance floor to take in the scenery. The ceiling is enchanted with iridescent snow falling from a star-studded night sky, blissfully complementing her gown. White and black trees line the walls asymmetrically covered with magical snow that never melts but feels slightly cold for effect. White draped long tables with silver rimmed glass flutes filled with sparkling substance and little powdered sugar treats are on separate silver trays are passed around magically floating on air. The stage where the performers ought to be was currently closed with black velvet curtains, awaiting for all of the guests to arrive.

Hermione excitedly looks around, greeting all of the guests that have arrived, mostly her friends and acquaintances from her classes. Cedric Diggory passes by, eyeing her up and down a smile in the crook of his mouth before Cho slaps his shoulder to get his attention then grabs his arm to pull him away from her, making Hermione giggle behind a white gloved hand.

A tall wizard in splendid black garb she had never seen before steps out from the velvet curtain and clears his throat with a confident smirk, making everyone in the room look towards the stage. "Beauteous Lady Witches and Vexing Wizard Gents, do not be afraid, be furious! Do not be strangers, be notorious! For tonight the performance we have for you today comes straight from the courtesy of Mr. Malfoy himself.." Lucius, looking snobbish as usual, lifts his chin to receive the applause and excited whispers around the floor.

Hermione frowned a little, not expecting this arrangement she originally overheard from the headmaster in his conversation with Professor McGonagall. Namely the string quartet they were planning on hosting the event, courtesy of the headmaster himself. Instead, the rush of excited whispers kept her on her toes. 'What is he up to?' She thought to herself before the enchanting announcer continued..

"May I present my Wrock [Wizard Rock] Band: The Vexers!" A burst of cheers nearly deafened Hermione as the curtains slowly withdrew to reveal the announcer in front as the lead singer while the other members had their back turned. The guitarist on the left striked up a tempo in beat with the drummer and bass. Enchanted violins floated above them beginning their first song.. One that sounded strangely familiar. A popular song she had thought came from the muggle world?! The guitarist then turned around and picked her out first in the crowd as she was too shocked to even find a dance partner. Heck, no one did, they only crowded beneath the stage, leaving her wide open and easy to spot, giving way to show off just how splendid she did under the falling snow and dimmed lighting. Only after quickly checking her out did she madly blush before he opened his mouth to sing.

XoXoXo

Draco patiently waited for their dimwitted lead singer to finish his agonizingly slow introduction. "Ah, it's time boys!" He announced as he spelled his guitar to stay at his hip without the need for a strap, "Let's make the witches panties drop!" The thick black curtains opened to their backs facing the crowds. He planned everything to be just the right surprise to the school. No one would call him a coward after tonight. Not after what he had in store for them, especially that annoyingly studious Granger Mudblood who always had the perfect comeback to his taunts. 'I'll show her..' He deviously thought to himself. He remembered his promise to her he had made in second year.

Him and his mates started to play in sync to the curtains rising before he turned first to start the song with electric guitar, while looking for his first target. He was momentarily caught off guard when he spotted her, nearly missing the beat, as she was looking straight at him, blushing wildly, and looking.. oh Merlin, he didn't have the time to come up with words other than perfectly ravishing.

Without further hesitation he draws in a breath and in a ruttish low voices sings:

"I'm gonna make you bend and break [lead joins in: it sent you to me without wait],

[Together:] Say a prayer, but let the good times roll

In case God doesn't show [Draco sings with a wink at her: let the good times roll, let the good times roll]"

[Draco:] "And I want these words to make things right

[Lead:] but it's the wrongs that make the words [Together:] come to life

[Draco:] Who does he think he is?

[Lead:] If that's the worst you got, better put your fingers back to the key"

XoXoXo

Hermione would have never guessed in her wildest dreams that Malfoy could sing like that. It sent a magical current to her toes and back, with no help from the enchanted speakers where she could hear Draco's guitar rifts loud and clear..

[Together/Chorus:] One night and one more time

Thanks for the memories even though they weren't so great

He tastes like you, only sweeter

One night, yeah, one more time

Thanks for the memories, thanks for the memories

See, he tastes like you, only sweeter, oh…

She felt strange he wasn't looking at anyone but her. It was very obvious the way she stood in her own clearing in the middle while everyone else jumped to the beat, pushing forward in a way similar to a muggle moshpit. How was she to know his band's music had leaked through to the muggle world where is was quite a hit. She always loved the guitarists husky voice and learned the song by heart in her summer stays at home when she wasn't around her two goofy friends. It would have been too embarrassing to share her obsession with this band, not knowing they were of magical origin. Merlin's beard, what would they think if they knew she was consistently wooing over the voice of none other than Draco Malfoy! She hated to admit hearing him perform live was.. so much sexier! To see lips to match the lyrics that had moved on to the next part of the song now was overwhelming her with sensations she never felt before..

[Draco:] Been looking forward to the future

[Lead:] But my eyesight is going bad

In this crystal ball

[Draco:] It is always cloudy except for

[Lead:] When I look into the past

One.. Night.. Stand.. One night stand, oh!

By the next chorus she couldn't help her heart keeping with the beat and allowed herself to change from a face of shock to pleasantly surprised.

XoXoXo

Draco could see the effect he was having on her was a success. She was beginning to smile, for fuck's sake! The energy he felt from the room was nothing compared to how he felt when The Hermione Granger was actually smiling at him for the first time, giving him a magical charge of energy into their next chorus:

[Together/Chorus:] One night and one more time!

Thanks for the memories even though they weren't so great

He tastes like you, only sweeter

One night, yeah, one more time

Thanks for the memories, thanks for the memories

See, he tastes like you, only sweeter.. Oh..

The music broke into a quiet but beautiful piece where Draco did some picking at his guitar..

[Draco:] They say..

[Lead:] I only think, in the form of crunching numbers

in hotel rooms, collecting page six lovers

get me out of my mind

get you out of those clothes

I'm a liner away

from getting you into the mood.. Whoa..

[Together/Chorus with just Drums:] One night and one more time

Thanks for the memories even though they weren't so great

He tastes like you, only sweeter

One night, yeah, one more time

Thanks for the memories, thanks for the memories

See, he tastes like you, only sweeter, oh…

[Repeat Together/Chorus with Gusto:]

[Draco:] One more night, one more time..

[Together:]

Thanks for the memories even though they weren't so great

He tastes like you, only sweeter

[Draco:] One more night, one more time [while the rest in background:] One night, yeah, one more time

Thanks for the memories, thanks for the memories

See, he tastes like you, only sweeter, oh…!

Draco ends the last beat on his guitar, allowing the crowd on the dance floor to go wild. Third year girls screamed for Draco and the lead singer with their arms raised while the boys forgot to even care that their dates were doing so. They were too caught up that someone in their own school was part of the mysterious Wrock group, as they pumped their fists in the air yelling, "yeah, mate! That's my friend up there! Go Slytherin!"

Hermione had half a mind to join in on the chaos but quickly remembered her friends were at the refreshment tables near the end of the Great Hall, where the whole of the Winter Ball was being held. It wouldn't please them to see her secret admiration for this band, especially now that she knows it consists of their number one sworn school enemy.

She all but fled to where they were currently standing, treats and goblets in hand, mouths hanging open after witnessing such a major blow to their egos. Ron would no doubt be furious, just as the announcer/lead singer predicted, but she knew there would be a far worse reaction from Harry, who unfortunately began choking on a piece of treacle tart before she got there. His face was beat red from coughing.

"Oh, no, Harry!" Hermione rushed over to pat his back, her own face was red for entirely different reasons.

"Should we, uh, go to the hospital wing?" Ron thought up quickly, grimacing as his ego felt bruised just a tad (a complete understatement, I would have you know) when Malfoy's band started up another favorite song of hers.

"Excellent suggestion, Ron!" She blurted before the two grabbed Harry on each side and hurried him out of the room before anyone knew what to make of the 'Golden Trio.'

XoXoXo [Still Hermione's POV]

For once in her life, Hermione Jean Granger felt torn. She never, not once in her student life at Hogwarts, would have ever questioned her loyalty to her closest friends, yet here she was. She knew the right thing to do would be to keep her friends company in the hospital wing, who stayed there merely at feeling one-upped by their slithering enemy, Malfoy, and yet.. she sort of.. wanted to go back. Just for another song or two and then she would never think of him, or his awesome music, again! She didn't, however, want to hurt her friends feelings, let alone betray them. It was the worst paradox she had yet to come across! How could she hate him now? How could she hate the sexy way the words came from his lips.. thinking about the sound alone gave her shivers.

{Some time later, after Malfoy's band had packed up and the traditional dance music could be heard}

Hermione felt herself torn throughout the night, and now she felt perplexed. How could she have gotten her feelings so muddled like this? She was proud of herself for resisting the urge to turn her back on her friends and dive into the dance party Malfoy's band conjured up with a few songs she could hear all the way down the halls. All the same, she felt ridiculously disappointed for missing it.

Sensing her disappointment and still beautiful appeal, Ron and Harry decided to clean up then head to the boys dorm to play exploding snap. They still felt sour from being bested from something, even if they hadn't a sliver in musical talent. They would use this as an excuse to let Hermione enjoy the rest of the Winter Ball without them there to ruin the mood for her. She was too smart and saw right through this, though, and so she gave them giant hugs, gratefully accepting their departures. She, of course, didn't want them to leave her all alone, but she couldn't very well force them to go after what had just happened. She felt a little ticked off Malfoy could so easily get under their skins and ruin what could have been a very beautiful and fun night.

Still a little angry, Hermione walked quickly through the halls to get back to the party and explain, in ways of white lies, why her friends couldn't come back with her to the ball. It's much easier to tell them her friends ate too many treats and had to visit the hospital wing from stomach aches since those boys usually did that anyway, just on non-too-great-occassions. "You know how they are. Those boys will be boys!" She laughed with Neville, who decided to withhold just how many treats he had already consumed himself.

XoXoXo

After they had wrapped up their songs, the Bassist and Drummer flicked their wands and shrunk and put away their instruments to clear the stage for the next performance: Goody ol' boring String Quartets and all their rubbish his father made him learn as a boy. At least they had somewhat diverted his attention when they had added some strings to their first song, if only to please his dear old dad. Well, and one other person he had a surprisingly profound effect on, to his amusement.

"Where did that Granger run off to, anyway?" He muttered to himself. She seemed to be really getting into his band's performance when she suddenly remembered herself and ran off towards the end of the Great Hall, after quickly looking back to Draco looking.. What word should he use? Regretful? If that's how she felt then the odds were stacked against her in this round. "The ball is in my court, now, mudblood.."

XoXoXo

The light began to dim again as the dance music began to play. Hermione gracefully accepted a dance from Neville, who awkwardly held treats behind her back, hoping she wouldn't notice (which she did but didn't say anything, to be polite). To be honest she danced with anyone to be polite, as was her ways, however no one sated her tastes. To her irony, she actually wanted to dance with the Slytherin brat.. just as a way to accept.. his talents. Not that she accepted his personality. No, no, nooo.. She just didn't want to stoop low enough to make a clever remark about his playing. Not that she could come up with one, his skills were too good to force a blemish on, which she wouldn't go that far to admit, either. She decided to only accept one dance with Malfoy, and only if he offered one. She was far too 'Gryfindor Proud' to do that, too.

As time went on and the music only letup in time to change the tempo, Hermione felt something new. Utterly exhausted! Who knew being so beautiful would earn her a dance with every male wizard in the entire Third Year. Her feet were hurting even after all the numbing charms she had cast on the her soles. These dances were brutal on girls, she recalled, but she hadn't remembered so much male attention before. At first she was delighted, then she was grateful and flattered, but now she felt overtired and in desperate need of sleep. She had early studies to attend to! Everyone else would be asleep since there would be no classes the next day, so of course they were hell bent on dancing the night away but not for Hermione Granger. She had a reputation to keep.. even if others called her 'An Insufferable Know-It-All.'

XoXoXo

After leaving the stage, Draco tended to the mass of girls in his year who begged to dance with him, mainly sticking to the pure bloods of his house, as his father was ever-watching. He grew bored in very little time and left to gather refreshments and the sort. He preferred quality over quantity any day, as the Malfoy's were bred by habit. So he only ate a few treats and quickly cast a cleaning charm on his teeth to avoid unwarranted damage to his dark smiles and open smirks his father had taught him through example.

Dancing couple after couple twirled by him in all shapes and colors one would find dizzying if paying attention to them. Luckily, he was only focused on one moving figure in particular. Her wanton smiles and careless laughter caressed his ears all too eagerly as his focus refused to stray from her. It was an entrancing sight to behold, even one with her blood. You would never guess her heritage at first sight, the way she moved and talked. Her smarts far outwitted even the most cunning of purebloods and her skills were hard to beat. She was a quick study so she easily found the steps to any tempo a dance could challenge her with. 'Damn, why am I thinking these things,' he self chastised. He shouldn't have such thoughts for they tempted to think of her as one of them. Then an idea came into his mind, budding from the dark unsanctioned recesses of his thoughts.

XoXoXo

As she grew more weary, step after step, partner after partner, she was just about to call it a night when a darkly adorned figure stepped in her path, holding up a pale hand. She nearly pushed it away if she weren't paying more attention to her manners. She curtsied and looked up as she was about to graciously take this last dance before she retired when suddenly all the breath left her in an instant, everything she thought about dancing with him flying out the winder. Before she had a moment to retract her offered hand, he firmly grasped it and pulled her almost forcefully onto the dance floor, then reached around her lower back and joined them in step with the other dancers just as the last song of the night began to play. It was the traditional and most intimate dance to end all dances in all of Wizarding fashion.. The Magician's Euphony.

"What are you doing, Malf.." She hissed through a fake smile, not wanting to cause a scene, but before she could finish he pulled her closer.

Bringing his lips to her ear and drawling in that now all familiar voice she remembered from him singing over the years, he said, "Don't bother asking me now, Granger. The song has already started." The sound reverberated throughout her body and sank low in her belly, making her feel both frightened and excited in one moment while he twirled her around his position before quick stepping to another stance. The tempo quickened then he stepped and gave her a slight dip, revealing a bit more to her neckline. She came back up quick and flushed at his handling her, falling hopeless to her impressions at his skills in dancing. Another way he one-upped her friends. Luckily, they weren't there to witness this or they would blow steam from their ears, and without the aid of another one of the Weasely Twins' inventions.

His firm grip on her hand was starting to leave red marks and oh Merlin, her feet should be killing her by now but the thrill of the dance prevented her mind from wandering anywhere near her aches. Instead, it was leaning more, to her disadvantage, towards pleasure. In all her time dancing she hadn't come across anyone nearly as diligent and precise as Malfoy was displaying now. Had he even danced with anyone else? If he had she might have noticed as he was an entire head taller than her and his broad shoulders in his black Wrock Band-styled robes were certainly hard to miss. How could she not notice just how much he has grown over the years. 'Since when have you become so handsome?' She wondered to herself.

He looked at her incredulously, before he made his classic smirk, "You think I'm what, Granger?"

'Shite..! Did I say it too loud?' "N-Nothing..! I was thinking about earlier. I didn't know you were in a band, let alone this one. I thought those were originally muggle songs." She said, lifting her chin to see if he caught a hint of insult in her insinuations. He did have a touch of red to his cheeks, perhaps she hit a nerve. At least that's what she hoped that was.

"Don't be stupid. Whatever you may have heard were leaked to the unintended public. They have no idea what they listening to, the lot. Muggles really are all simpletons, by comparison." Then a thought dawned on him. "Hey, if you listened to my music, even if it were in a freakish place, that means you must have liked what you heard, eh? Are you a fan, Granger? Do you fancy me, mudblood? You're so pathetic." He laughed.

XoXoXo

He hit one too many nerves by now and she had had enough. Pushing him into Pansy Parkinson and one of her numerous dance partners, Hermione turned around and stormed off of the dance floor, beautiful dress and all her night's sparkly glory. Draco had won yet again tonight, it was by far the best school dances he ever attended, and yet he didn't feel so hot about it now. For some reason he felt.. was that a tinge of regret? 'No, no, it couldn't be. There's no way I could feel anything, especially not for her.'

He couldn't tell his father about the dance, he knew he wouldn't approve, even if it were to challenge Granger in a duel of insults. {Lucius already left long before the formal dancing had begun. He only showed to bask in the pride for his son. Once that was over he left to go back to the comforts of his luxurious manor and to boast to his colleagues in the coming days. Arthur Weasely would make a fine example of what one couldn't do for his son. Or sons, the foolish man had too many of them for a blood-traitor. Disgusting, the lot of them.} He could, however, receive praise from his father for his more remarkable efforts, however small the praise may be. That he could feel good from though he somehow wouldn't have found it pleasing to share his portion of insults used to make the mudblood cry like it used to. It was odd in a way.

Finding no more use in hanging around these monkeys, Draco headed to the Great Hall's entrance and left to see what his classmates were up to. Maybe he could pull a prank or two on any unsuspecting snoggers. That would surely lift his mood.

On his way, he passed near one of the ends of the hall he performed the dip with her and stopped short, noticing a glimmering clothed box with a matching wrist-let. He nearly ignored it when he recognized something familiar about it and instead of leaving it be, he bent over and picked it up. 'What is this little treasure?' He mused before pocketing it and walking off towards the dungeons, where his dorm's after party awaits.

XoXoXo

Hermione was proud of herself this time. All these dealing with spiteful cockroaches like Malfoy has made her all the stronger. His insults rarely even made her upset anymore yet tonight he had gone too far. She was proud for not crying, in the least, however she wasn't so thrilled at getting angry and literally making Malfoy "shove-off." What would McGonagall say if she saw her acting that way? No amount of verbal abuse should be enough for her to push a person into other persons. It wasn't in her nature to make a victim out of innocent bystanders, even if it was someone as unashamedly like Pansy. She felt quite guilty about that.

She had started to walk to her dorm when she realized she forgot her silver clutch. She would have just left it if it hadn't belonged to her mother. Also, she kept a stash of song lyrics in a secret compartment to sing to herself when she missed home. Who would have thought the songs that held sentiments of home had actually belonged to Malfoy and his band. This world was becoming far too small to her liking. She had to get the clutch back before anyone else did. If anyone found out she had a crush on the guitarists voice she could possibly teased for centuries!

She quickly turned on her heel and made haste, back tracking to the Great Hall, keeping her eyes searching along the floor. Hermione was feeling a bit worn out and clumsy therefore never saw what was coming towards her in that very instant.

XoXoXo

Just as he was leaving the Great Hall, Draco felt something small and warm collide with his chest with surprising force, sending him falling backwards to the floor. A small, oomf! Resounded along the empty corridor.

This small thing was hard to make out as it was now covering him with bits of white poof here and there, some of it covering his face. It must have been one of the girls from the dance since none of the boys there would be caught dead in so much of this frilly fluff that smelled of honey and strawberries. Her arms were on either side of his chest, and her body, from what he could feel, was sprawled perfectly snug against his own. It felt rather nice and earned a budge in his trousers. He grimaced at the idea it could be some ugly twat so he made work to unravel the mess that was laid all about him and the mysteriously limp form against his body. His short work uncovered first a beautiful mess of chestnut brown hair, the culprit for the nice fragrance, which also partially covered his unconscious assailants face.

Roughly grabbing one of her bare shoulders, he not so gently shook it saying, "Hey, you prat, wake up!" She didn't budge so he shook again, "Get off me, you're heavy for such a small thing." Her only reply was a groan and some shifting before going limp again. He sighed and lifted the hair that was covering the rest of her face, to see just who it was he would have to "rennervate," so he could properly reprimand her but in doing so paused immediately. "Of course.. Granger."

He reached of the wand in his robes to find it must have slipped out and knocked away in the fall. His head throbbed a little as he looked around for it. He planned to blast this girl to the next planet if she didn't get off of him before someone walked in on them like this. So much for a good day this was turning out to be.

His agitation from being knocked to the ground was vastly fading the more this predicament begun to sink in. He tried not to think on it but it was impossible giving the fact that she was on his person at this very moment, completely unaware of what she was doing to his mental health. He already noticed how well she fit in to him when they danced but he was more focused on refining their movements together than dwelling on something as pitiful as that. Now, however, it was unavoidable to think about. She felt good to him, in an awkward sleeping hug sort of way, and he didn't like it one bit.

In the good ol' fashioned way, he used his muscles pushed her into a lazy sitting position, her head resting in the crook of his neck. His unease grew the longer they stayed that way so he hurriedly turned her over, falling onto her back in an elegant thump. He slowly got up himself, first looking at their surroundings to make sure no one was near and then to search for his wand. He couldn't very well leave the witch there asleep on the ground or it would raise questions. Hermione didn't seem to have seen who she had collided into but he didn't want to leave anything to risk in case he would be accused of any wrongdoings. Wrong place at the wrong time wouldn't play to his favor this time around, not that it ever did anyway.

"Alas.." He picked up his wand when something else dropped out from his dress robes. The little clutch matched perfectly to Granger's gown. 'So it was hers, afterall.' Placing the clutch back in his pocket, he cast a simple spell to lift her so he could bring her to the hospital wing. The Great Hall had already mostly cleared out already, to his great luck, and the only ones left were there to clean up after the mess. He didn't want to stick around only to get in trouble so he took this chance to tote her to the hospital wing real fast so he could get back to his dorm and be in the clear.

To add to his fortunes, they got to the wing without so much as a ghost passing by to question his whereabouts with an unconscious witch after hours, which would be horribly suspicious. Once they passed the doors to the wing he took her to the first bed within reach and carefully lowered her down onto it, careful not to wake her. Normally he wouldn't care but he needed to keep a clean profile at the school for the things the Dark Lord may or may not have planned for his use behind enemy lines. So carefully, it is. He swore the stress will kill him before anything else! At least he had his Wrock band to vent his frustrations.

He just about turned to go back but remembered her clutch. He pulled the small thing out of his pocket and contemplated laying on the bedside table but paused in doing so. She didn't have her clutch on her when she passed out. As clever as she is would she eventually figure out it was him? He decided against returning it to her out of paranoia and tucked it away back into his robes. Perhaps it was better to just let it "pop-up" when no one was looking. With his mind set on what he would do he finally left to return to his dorms and warm four poster bed so he could reflect on how this roller coaster day was and sort out all this mess of emotions.

XoXoXo

Hermione woke with a start, instantly regretting sitting up so fast. She clutched her head with one hand and pulled out the pins to allow her hair to fall down in soft curls around her shoulders. It was getting awfully long now, nearing the lowest part of her back. She sat back, scooting enough to let herself rest against the metal headboard, though it was pretty difficult still wearing her large gown. It unnerved her to not know why she was still wearing it, let alone awoke to discover herself among rows of beds in the hospital wing. A few other beds were occupied by students who had sneaked in alcohol to their "secret" after parties they clearly did not allow in the school dorms. Thinking of the dorms she realized her friends might have noticed her missing by now, where on earth were they?

All this thinking was making her feel hungry but she couldn't very well go to breakfast looking like she was taking a rather long detour on a 'walk of shame' so she got up and hurried towards her dorm. Once she passed the portrait she carefully tip toed around the couch to not wake whoever it was sleeping there. It was still slightly dark outside so at least Hermione didn't mess up her plans for the day so far. Early mornings were the best for her since everyone wouldn't wake for a while giving her hours of peace and quite. Perfect for a serious student such as herself.

She gathered her uniform and hopped into an already magically prepared bath. The house elves knew she was an early riser and made great efforts to help her get ready in the morning so she could maximize her study time. Dumbledore adored her persistence so he made sure she had everything she needed, including breakfast and early access to the library without any trouble from the teachers or school ghosts. Hermione felt in debt to the headmaster but he simply waved it off saying she did most of the work, he just merely gave her the tools necessary to do so, which she had every right to.

Once in the bath, she felt her stiff muscles relax incredibly. She took this opportunity to reflect on the night before and everything that lead up to her winding up in the hospital wing. She was grateful no one noticed her short stay in the wing, even Madam Pomfrey didn't see her, she left so early. That took care of all the explaining she now wouldn't have to do and yet that did nothing to answer any of her own questions: 'How did I pass out? I didn't feel funny and certainly didn't drink anything funny. I was a little tired but that's how I usually feel after a hard day's work in the library and it never makes me pass out like that. Maybe the physical exertion did the trick since studying doesn't require you to wear heels and dance until you drop.' She laughed to herself.

Lathering up some soap she began to gently scrub and small towel over her arms and her legs, humming one of her favorite tunes from home. She immediately stopped herself when she realized just what she was humming to.. Thanks For The Memories. Her favorite [what she thought was] muggle song. Shite, how was this even possible? If Malfoy, or anyone for that matter, ever found that out.. oh, she couldn't even think about the consequences. The song brought her flashes of vivid images of seeing that velvet curtain rise, and the back of a blond head on a pair of broad shoulders. Oh how didn't she recognize him? She didn't know anyone with stark blonde hair like that, even if it was actually messy for once. It looked rather dashing on him.. why didn't he wear his hair that way more often?

'Oh, STOP it, me! Don't you dare go there. What would Harry think? Ron?' She chastised herself. Oh they would utterly judge her. Ron was infamous for holding a grudge and when he held one then she had no choice but to follow suit. It was the only way to deal with the bloke! And what about the dream she had? She might be able to consciously control her thoughts on the matter but her dreams were a whole other story. That night she had imagined herself laying on top of him. The way he brushed her hair off her face was surreal, she felt little pinpricks of electricity when he touched her and no matter how she refused to believe it she couldn't stop herself from feeling fluttery in her chest. It must have been all those butterflies in her stomach. He felt so warm and inviting, it truly couldn't have been real, she didn't ever want the dream to end. There was no use running from it any longer. Hermione Granger was inconceivably attracted to the one and only.. Draco Malfoy.

XoXoXo

Ron woke up before Harry, but regrettably so. He felt sick to his stomach and ran to the loo to relieve his gut of the excess alcohol he ingested. It wasn't his fault they never allowed ANY of the years to have it, therefore a large portion of the school was highly unused to consuming quantities larger than a half pint. He, of course, had five. Harry only had three but didn't feel the need to play drinking games like his friend.

"Groannnn..." Harry finally began to stir behind the curtains of his bed. "Ron..? Where are you.."

"Over here, mate." He replied, his nausea revealed in his speech.

"Ughhh, that was some night, huh? Do you think Hermione had any fun?"

"I wouldn't know, I never saw her in the dorm last night. Do you think..?"

"No, it's HERMIONE, Ron. She's too responsible to not return to her bed before 10. She likes to wake up early to study for both existent and non-existent exams that are months away. In fact, she must be in the library as we speak. Let's go ask anyone we might see on the way there, later, okay? Just to be sure."

"Harry, she's a big girl, leave her alone. I'm sure she's alright."

The two finally got around to dressing and grumpily made their way to the common room. All the wrappers and empty bottles of butterbeer had already been cleaned up in the night. Katie Bell had only just woken up on the couch with hair sticking this way and that, looking a little lost and confused, her eyes only focused on the pair when they approached her.

"Hey Katie," Harry said, "Doing alright?"

"I've felt better." She said, closing her eyes tight to a passing headache, her voice was a little harsh for screaming at a certain Slytherin during a Wrocking night at the Ball.

"Right there with you," Ron second as another wave of nausea came over him.

"I was wondering if you ever saw Hermione coming in last night? I mean, I know she's smart enough to stay out of trouble and get to her bed on time, every night. It's just that we," He motioned between him and Ron, "didn't see her for a while since we left the party early and just wanted to check."

"No.." Katie struggled to think back to last night. That Ravenclaw bloke couldn't keep his claws off her.. She shook her head harder, "No, sorry. I only saw her going out before the party, but nothing again after that."

Harry looked stunned for a moment before furthering the conversation, "Okay, thanks Katie. Would you tell her we're looking for her if she comes back before we do?"

"Yeah, okay.." She said before slumping back onto the couch, falling into another dreamless sleep.

"Umm, before we go, maybe we should ask someone else to relay our message?" Ron suggested, which Harry gladly accepted.

XoXoXo

His dreams were chaotic.. Or at least they had been until she entered them. In the beginning he dreamed of the Dark Lord torturing him for failing his assigned task, yelling "Crucio!" over and over again, with no end in sight. Suddenly there was a bright light and large floating feathers pure as snow falling all about him. The pain ebbed until it finally faded away, taking all the darkness with it, and in that light a figure appeared draped in white silk and a long matching silk scar wrapped once around her neck and trailing down behind her. Her face was blurry but as she came close he could smell a slight hint of honey and strawberries.

He jolted awake in the common room. 'I must have fallen asleep during the after party, how lame.' No one seemed to bother waking him so he could sleep in his bed rather than embarrassingly pass out where he sat. His head ached from too much Merlin's Moonshine the night before a couple of 6th years had brewed up, per his request. It was a name that had leaked to the muggle world only they cut out the Merlin bit. Sigh, muggles must be truly incompetent to come up with their own ideas for a change.

The was still some left in the goblet he was still holding. Looking around to check he was alone he quickly downed the rest of it and threw the goblet into the fireplace. It was one of the few silver rimmed glasses they had swiped from the ball. Throwing the glass made something slip from his lap and landed with a light thunk on the floor, making him look down. It was a clutch? Why was he holding this? Oh.. Granger. The thought reminded him of how her slender curves felt on top of him and how her skin glowed under the moonlight as he gently lowered her onto a cot in the hospital wing.

Shaking his head to rid the thoughts, he picked up the beaded object with two fingers this time, mindful of any spells she might have cast on it to ward off intruders. To his surprise the clasp popped open without excessive force and allowed him to peek inside. Nothing like getting to know a woman by the contents of her purse. Or clutch, in this case. What he found inside was nothing he wouldn't expect, which he found boring. Lipstick, some makeup, a quill and some ink in a miniature bottle along with a bit of folded up parchment.

"Typical Bookworm," he spat, but something caught his attention he didn't notice at first glance. A corner of some clipped paper was randomly sticking out of the lining. Odd. He grabbed his wand and cast a decharming spell to reveal there was actually a hidden pocket. Opening the little pocket he saw some muggle newspaper article that seemed pretty old with little hand drawn hearts drawn around the edges. Maybe she forgot her clutch conclealed it? He was about to chuck the clutch onto the common room rug when a few words caught his eye. It was a title. A song title..

A short while later he was in a piping cold shower, attempting to clear the fog over his mind. It wasn't so clouded over by the drink, no it was something that stirred an energy in his being he hadn't the time to fathom before. Now he had all too much time to struggle against the new feelings that were seeping into his male nature. He mustn't get excited for such a low life. He had other things he had to worry over that put his very life on the line since before he was conceived but what was the harm in having a little fun along the way? Something that would help the days go by faster. Something that had to do with a cheeky little mudblood.

Exiting the shower he quickly towel dried his hair and left it to finish drying on it's own, not caring how groomed he looked. He was tiring of keeping up appearances day after day so he let it go for now. He was content to have the entire dorm room to himself this time. Anyone sleeping wouldn't bother him since it was still pretty early so he took this time to rummage through his large wardrobe of exquisite suits and robes. He hate wearing a uniform so he shod off that idea and concluded in picking something basic yet still refined so he threw it on and made his way to the library to look for his future plaything, skipping breakfast altogether. He was hungry for an entirely different morsel.

XoXoXo

After her bath, Hermione slipped on her uniform. She typically didn't wear her uniform but today she felt it would help her focus better on her studies. Her friends had already made plans to go to Hogsmeade but she passed on it this time. She would have pressed for them to stay and study for the exams but she knew after the night they had they needed some fresh air. It was the opposite for her, though. Books were just as effective, if not more so, than fresh air for they gave her a perfectly great distraction from the git who was now plaguing her mind. Ugh, teenage hormones! She didn't need this, not now before next month's exams! Speaking of the ferret she just had to surpass him this time in Potions class. He always found a way to best her at this subject and it never ceased to leave a fowl taste in her mouth. She had to beat him this time, if not at dancing, then at smarts.

Digging into her breakfast she looked around her table and along the corners of the Great Hall from where she sat. Considering everything was already cleaned up she figured it must have been found already and would possibly be sitting in Dumbledore's office. For such a trivial object as her clutch she would have normally just not gone through the trouble to bother the headmaster on a relaxing day as this but it did hold sentimental value and she couldn't risk it getting stowed away in the room of requirement for someone else to keep. Especially when it had that secret compartment inside. Her name wasn't on the item however on the one particular muggle news clipping she had drawn hearts all around the border and if you turned it around to the back you would see her name as clear as daylight. That plus a larger heart encasing it and one other name. The humiliation of just thinking about anyone finding that made her lose her appetite so she decided to head to the headmasters office first on her list of important things to do.

XoXoXo

Draco was sort of shocked. He only made jokes about Hermione being a fan of The Vexers in a nonchalance sort of way but her didn't know he had hit the nail on the head. Merlin, she was so red. Now he knows why she reacted so dramatically. It was natural to freak out when one is so very nearly exposed to their peers. 'Oh, what should I do with this information? Should I tease her like I do about everything? Nah, too boring. Blackmail her into doing the most ridiculous things in front of the school? She might actually prefer exposing her secret compared to that. She was too Griffindor-Proud to accept any hazing challenges. What. Should. I. Do?' He loved the idea of being able to actually control the witch but by her own will, not some imperius curse, besides that was illegal and he needed to stay on good terms.. for now. Without further thought, the idea formed in his mind like a streak of lightening.

It was still early but he was well aware that the school would empty itself of 3rd years thanks to their stupid Hogsmeade trip. He was now grateful for it since it would allow him to have a one-on-one chat with the bushy haired witch without interruption from the two loudmouth friends of hers. He knew her whereabouts better than she thought anyone could. The exams were coming up in under a month so naturally she would be spending that time studying and not wasting away baby sitting those Potter and Weasely brats. Piece of pumpkin pie.

As he expected he found her nose deep in an advanced book called, "Potions and Their Masters, Volume IV" the same one he had already read three times over during summer break. It was his niche, what could he say? He sauntered up to her table, angled right next to her and sat down. Right on her bookbag.

"Ugh, would you please go bugger of-" She went to say until she removed the book from her face. The scrawled words were pretty small and packed on each page so it was unfortunately necessary to literally bury yourself in it just to be able to read it. Upon seeing Malfoy so close to her person she went to scoot back but he caught the arms of the chair, stopping it in time. He was too strong and easily overpowered her. "What do you want, Malfoy." She asked infuriated. She wouldn't give in no matter what he was about to say to her.. That is until he pulled something out of his pocket, causing her to first show alarm and then she dead panned, while trying to rein in her blush, remembering not to let him see how he affected her. Her hesitation gave her time enough to take in his brutish appearance. He let his hair stay tousled just like it looked when she first saw him on the stage. He was dressed quite well, in contrast to her school robes this time. He a wore finely tailored wizard styled suit, keeping it all black with a deep green tie, fitting for the Slytherin house. His close proximity made her head spin, she could smell a clean musk of cologne that must have been expensive and possibly foreign. Only the best for haughty background he possessed. Typical.

"Give that back, you little ferret, that's mine."

"Hah, little? I hardly think so," He smirked. "I just thought I would have a little fun on my day off. Care to join?"

"W-What do you mean, you don't expect me to actually join you in anything? I have far more important things to do and being around you is fortunately not one of them. Now if you please-"

"Nope, not getting away so easily, my little muffin." He spat, "You see, what I have here is not just your clutch. Actually, that you can have back." He tossed it at her, making her scramble to catch it before it could spend anymore time on the floor. "What I have here," He pulled out the newspaper clipping from his sleeve and waved it in front of himself, making sure to keep it out of reach, "is of far more use to me, little mouse.."

Her face paled in shock. 'No.. No way..'

"You see I thought of many things I could do to get you to persuade me to keep this little nugget to myself but then I figured what would I ever want from you? No, I decided it would be much more entertaining to watch your little diaper gang break up when they hear that their beloved Miss Granger has a thing.. for ME." He grinned evilly.

"You wouldn't, you can't!" After a second she grew confident just like he knew she would, "They won't believe you. They are true friends to me and would understand that I had no idea who you really were. You have nothing on me, Malfoy. In fact, the joke's on you since I thought you were a muggle all along!"

"And so you would think, but you're not as clever as you wish you were. Tell me, Hermione, do they know all about our little rendezvous after the ball or should I tell them?" His eyebrow quirked. 'Now I've got you.'

It was unnerving to be called by her first name by him of all people yet she found she hated herself for also feeling a flare of jitters. What he said after that made her confused. "What rendezvous? The last time I saw you it was after the Magician's Euphony, then now."

"Oh, really? I remember it all so well. You were getting quite chummy towards me. Especially how you practically threw yourself at me." He snickered.

Her eyes popped, "What in the devil are you talking about? I did no such thing!" From what she could recall. His asseveration was starting to concern her.

"You know perfectly well, Granger. I was about to leave after receiving your 'terrific' display of gratitude for my saving you from those mongrels, that fancy themselves dancers. Then, just my luck, I came across that little gem." He pointed towards her silver bejeweled clutch in her hand. "I was going to just toss it but then I thought better of it so I tucked it away from prying eyes. As I was leaving, you suddenly leaped out of the tapestry, pouncing on me. You knocked my head real hard in the process, not to mention ruining my expensive dress robes in the process-You owe me for that, which is my excuse for not having the sense to drag you towards one of the professors for sexual harassment. My bad for not going through with it, I would have loved to see your face when they expelled your arse." He sneered.

"Wha-Ju-! Gah, don't be ridiculous, you bastard! I wouldn't be caught dead thinking of you in that way, let alone do anything of the sort.. to anyone! I'm not that kind of girl.."

"You can defend yourself all you like, little mouse, but I can't help but recall the way you groaned when I swept the hair off your face to discover who my little offender was. I do say, I was shocked to see it was you. What's worse, you managed to also discard my wand, and left me defenseless against your advancements." She was speechless at what he was accusing so he plowed through, "You draped yourself on my person in the most unladylike like fashion and made work for me to get you off. You even had the audacity to fall asleep! I had to whisk you away to the infirmary before you got us both in trouble and for that you owe me an apology."

She was fuming now, not only disbelieving everything that spewed out of his perfect lips. Oh she resented those lips. She resented him and everything that has happened because of him. Why is this even happening to her? And now he wants her to apologize?! 'Oh, that retched ferret!' But before she could utter a word in defiance, he cut her off.

"No, don't even bother trying to say sorry now. I have a much better idea to get back at you for all the trouble you have cause me.."

"Trouble..?! Caused you-"

"Silence, mudblood! I have given you my proposition, yet.." Her ears were turning scarlet now, though her face could be excused as blushing from anger, he assumed there were more to it than meets the eye, which somehow made him feel triumphant in taming his new pet.

"..What do you want from me, Malfoy. Be warned, I won't do anything that will break the school rules or force me to miss any classes.."

"That's the spirit." he smiled ruefully, looking down to her lips and back to her hazel eyes. He stepped closer, leaning in towards her chair she was still sitting in, making her lean further back if it was even possible. "You will be mine. My own personal slave to do what I want. Fulfill my every whim. When I feel I have been compensated enough I will release you to go do whatever you waste your life on."

She gasped, "Never in a million years!"

"Alright then," He backed away, "I'll just go take this on a little trip into Hogsmeade and share the gruesome news! Hermione Granger is a philandering stalker who dreams of bedding the ever ravishing Drac-" He didn't get to finish when she lurched forwards and clamped a hand down over his mouth. What little distance between them flourished unwanted desires in his mind he shoved away to it's inner recesses.

"Fine..!" She hissed, "I'll do it." She said it so quietly he almost missed it.

"What was that, stalker? I didn't hear you."

"I said fine. I'll be your little.. whatever. Just don't tell anyone.. well, anything!"

A grim smile spread upon his face, "Alright, little mouse. We have a deal."

 **A/N:**

 **Thanks for reading, guys! I have a feeling I am much better at one shots than I am at long stories. This is my longest chapter I have ever written on here, I can't wait to reread it in fanfiction format on my phone and see if it really does look that long or if it's just me. On Word, it's like 15 pages and took under a week to write. Kudos to everyone who can do serious writing and update up to even 30 chapters. I love all the works I read on here.**

 **Anyway, let me know if you like this oneshot because I just might make it a two-sies! Hehe. Feel free to adopt any of my work on here. I love setting up the plot and then feel sad if I spend too much time away from updating. If you do please let me know so I can see where you take the characters, it's always fascinating what other writers come up with!**

 **XOXOXO~Anna**

P.S.~ Please review, good or flames. I just want to see what you think! I know sometimes I don't stick to the storyline or totally mess things up, I'm always half awake and too tired to notice [or care, cough cough] I have kids and a lot of stuff I have to do outside this site, so I sadly can't be perfect like our hot Slytherin tries to be ;)


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Forgive me if I mess up the events a bit. I can only write when inspiration strikes and whatever suits it's fancy turns into a new chapter. Also, I don't own anything besides whatever random stuff I come up with that differs from the original stuff~! Other than that I hope you enjoy this chapter, it gets rather interesting, hehe! OH, also, I decided I will do my best to keep updating this story. It's starting to grow on me so I don't know if I will stick to oneshots-like-thingies or more story-like-thingies. Call it what you want!**

 **Song Inspiration: Snowing - Moran**

XoXoXo

It was the start of a fresh Spring morning and a new Semester. Hermione was already awake and ready to go, ever excited for their dear new Professor Hagrid in his Care of Magical Creatures class. Harry and Ron agreed to go with her and make the best of students for him to show their support. Hermione checked the mirror a second time, very content the new hair potion Katie bought for her from Hogsmeade seemed to be doing the trick. Her curls were nice big waves, instead of the big brown bush she was accustomed to. She tsk'd at herself wondering when did she ever start caring so much about her looks when all she ever put effort in were her studies all her life. Still, it was a nice change this school year. She even put on a minimal amount of makeup just a little mascara for her lashes and lip gloss. For some reason it helped her feel more brave in case a certain Slytherin showed up.

Speaking of said Slytherin, she was actually shocked she hadn't seen much of him the last few days. It was a nice break after all, considering all the random things he had her do for him on her free time, such as pick out books in the library, clean any of his belongings and re-charm magical items that were wearing out. She felt exhausted and in desperate need of decent study time. The way he worked her she only had half the time she usually spent and that included staying up a few hours later every night to catch up. As promised it never involved breaking any rules or missing classes, for which she was grateful for. Now that she had a break from him she managed to catch up to her usual standards of preparedness, which was to be farther ahead than everyone.. Even beyond the most diligent of students.

"Hermione, over here!" She looked up to spot Ron talking with Ginny over by the common room fireplace. She marveled at a few other sleepy looking students who were usually never spotted out of bed before 8am. Just as she reached the two Ron left to go see what was taking Harry so long.

"It's nice to actually see you, 'Mione," Said Ginny, "Where have you been these past few months? People rarely see Harry and Ron without you and you suddenly vanished from the group without saying hardly a thing! If I hadn't seen you in the hall between classes I could have sworn you had left the school altogether. The boys haven't stopped pestering me to ask you, have you got a.. uh. A new 'friend?'" She rose her brows a few times to suggest an entirely different sort of friend.

She was thinking of that Slytherin brat ordering her about and making fun at her clothing, hair, and makeup-less looks every time she had to be around him. One instance he even scared her by stopping her over by the broom closet, looking at it for a while then back at her as if contemplating something but then thought better of it and strode off, leaving her there wondering what in Godric's name was wrong with the git, hoping he hadn't just thought about locking her in there or making her get heftier cleaning supplies for another bothersome chore. His demands were becoming awfully pointless. He also liked to take advantage of situations to get close to her as if trying to rile her up in some way, which was never going to work. Well, she tried to seem un-fathomed by it all. There was another time she nearly lost her mind when she tripped and he caught her in time, only for the extremely heavy books on the table by their work station to topple down on top of him, making him land on top of her in the most unpleasant way possible. Their faces were a mere inches apart and they stared into each others eyes for too long when suddenly he jumped up and left the classroom in the middle of Potions Class! She stood up only to look around and see every student turned in her direction, even Professor Snape had paused his lesson long enough to remark on Granger's intriguing abilities to cause trouble regardless of her presence whether within a classroom or not. As if her face wasn't flushed enough from being on the floor with Malfoy.

"Bloody hell, you do have someone in mind, eh?!" Ginny elbowed her side with a snigger.

"Good Godfric, no Gin! I was just thinking over a bit on my Herbology homework. I may have put down the wrong ingredient for the slug repellent. I'll be right back!"

"Bu-" Ginny didn't get to say anything further, for she was already running full speed back up the steps to the girls chambers. "Odd.. She never acted like that until after that night.." She thought out loud.

"What's odd, Gin?" Ron asked, looking around for Hermione who seemed to disappear, yet again.

She looked back to the girl dorm, biting her lip. "I better tell you after some breakfast. Come on." She gestured but the boys didn't want to leave just yet. "It's about Hermione, you gits. Let's go!" She whispered furiously, peaking their interests, their feet finally started to move.

XoXoXo

Hermione felt baffled at what Ginny had said. How could she have those kinds of flashbacks after Ginny asked if she was seeing anyone?! Why was she remembering how it felt to have him so close to her? They weren't anything beyond friends, heck they weren't even friends to begin with, so how could those memories stir up such strange feelings inside of her? Could she be developing a one-sided crush to Malfoy after all? She felt like she wanted someone to punch her and get her to snap out of her stupor and get back to reality. Breakfast had already begun but she still needed time to cool off her flushed face.

XoXoXo

"What's this about Hermione? Did she tell you anything about why she keeps disappearing on us?" Asked Harry.

"Well, Hermione has been odd, like you mentioned. I asked her if she was dating anyone and she just spaced out before blushing then going off about fixing some homework. She seemed to be in denial about liking anyone. Honestly I've never seen her so distracted before!" Ginny remarked.

"You don't s'pose she's dating anyone.. right?" Gulped Ron. He denied being interested in her but sometimes it was hard to tell. Maybe he just had protective brotherly feelings towards her, Ginny brushed off the thought.

"She has been gone a lot," Stated Harry. "I just figured she would tell us about it sometime soon, it's starting to make me nervous since she seems more tired and forgetful, too. Does dating have that effect on girls, Gin?"

"Hmm.. Maybe at first but not once the nervous stage has passed," Supplied Luna as she joined their table. "I read in the Quibbler about dating at magical schools and it said nearly nothing about witches dating habits in modern times but I did read an article about how they used to date centuries ago. It said the older families are more traditional-like." She picked up a piece of toast and a fried egg and folded the two together before dunking them in her pumpkin juice and took a bite.

A little disturbed by her eating habits, Harry just watched her while Ron spoke up, "Traditional-like, how..?"

"Well, the men would cast a spell over the witch in question and it would put her in a sort of trance. Everything else would go along as normal but the witch would never dare stray from her intended.." This peaked everyone's attention as she continued, "Then, when the time was right, he would take her to his family and claim her as his own."

"Not much different if a caveman clubbed a woman o'er the head and dragged her back to his cave." Said Ron, digging in to his food. "Hey you don't s'pose 'Mione..?"

"That sounds totally barbaric," Said the familiar voice which then turned to gape at Ron, "It's amazing anyone can understand you, Ronald, when your face is stuffed like that." Said Hermione as she finally joined the lot, sitting down at the table.

"Wh-mf?" Said Ron taking another couple bites even though his mouth was already at full capacity, earning a disgusted look from the girls at the nearby table.

"So you were saying, Luna.. This was all in the Quibbler?" Interjected Hermione, ignoring Ron's behavior at the moment.

As the girls at the table continued their discussion, transitioning to everyday girl's talk about boys, Ron finished his bite and whispered to Harry, "Isn't the Quibbler written by Luna's father? That's some twisted indirect dating advice right there." Harry couldn't help but nod with round eyes before tuning them out and focus on the delicious spread of bacon and biscuits in front of him.

XoXoXo

It was early morning and he pondered about the Winter Ball. Actually, he did that a lot lately. Pondering. He thought about the moment he discovered who Hermione's secret crush was and didn't feel disgusted or even concerned. He felt, dare he say, excited? That was a stretch. More like.. Intrigued. That's the word. He liked his new pet. She was obedient although sometimes hesitant to do as he asked. It irked him that she hated the idea of anyone finding out her secret. It wasn't that bad if she were discovered, was it? His plan backfired on his ego a bit but he brushed it away without a care. It was nice to have a pet, he thought to himself, but somehow it still wasn't as satisfying as he hoped it would be. 'I want more.. more what?' He gruffed out of bed, pushing the strange thoughts from his mind, it's too early to concern himself like this.

Where was she anyway? He had been away for a week, visiting the manor and practicing with his band. It was mostly uneventful and boring. He wished he could have dragged that mudblood along with him, there were several things he had in mind for her to do. The idea made him chuckle a bit as he stepped in the shower. His body was changing over the years. His natural physique was harder, stronger, equipping him with the things hormonal girls raved over. Especially now that his secret identity was exposed. It made him hard thinking about the girls he had bedded without effort, leaving him temporarily sated though not nearly enough. He craved more. Something pure and untouched but he didn't know quite what.. or who would be satisfy his growing needs. Did he crave more than just the physical experiences now? Perhaps, but he didn't dwell on those thoughts as they washed away down his toned abs and sculpted thighs.

Spelling himself dry, he sighed, stepping out and got dressed in his school uniform and robes. They were crisp new ones his mother collected for him. She wouldn't allow him one step back at school without a pristine appearance. Appearances were very important to the upper class like his old pure-blooded heritage. He left his hair tousled, deciding he liked this new rough cut look. It made all the girls swoon but he did it for the one he had in mind. The one he liked to tease. The one that was taboo for him to claim. If only his father could see his dark thoughts now, he would tear the place to shreds in a heartbeat. What a delicious scandal.

His first class of the day he loathed to think about. Surely the Granger brat would be in love with this class for some disturbing reason or another. The way they clung to the great oaf was only proof after all. Maybe she would be in the same class as him? He imagined all the ways he could humiliate her in front of her cheeky band of idiots. Saint Potter and Weasel-bee were a thorn in his side and quite the annoying obstacles to his one good form on entertainment. He made sure he would make an example of them. The rumor of how the "Boy-Who-Lived" fainted just from looking at a dementor had him laughing until his sides hurt. That would be an excellent starting point for him and his classmates. With renewed vigor, he left the Slytherin dorm, grabbing his menace of a book along the way.

XoXoXo

The weather was astonishingly warm considering it was still spring. Her curls bounced along her back as her and her friends walked outside towards the Hagrid's hut, where they were instructed to meet for their first lesson of the day. They made sure to arrive slightly early to get a chance to meet 'Professor Hagrid' to lend him encouragement on his proud first day of being a Professor. She felt so proud for her friend, finding himself a place at the Professors table.

The trees were so lovely, slowly swaying in the breeze, as if feeling the happiness that radiated from the students on such a beautiful day away from the cold enclosure of the school castle. As great as it was to roam the halls of the marvelous structure, it felt just a wonderful to breathe the fresh air and feel the sun on their faces again. Other students were early, as well, to her surprise. Maybe they were just as excited to be outdoors as she was.

"Hermione, have you figured out how to tame your book? I still seem to have trouble with mine.." Neville held up his that was strapped up with one of his belts his gran gave him for Christmas.

"Of course, you stroke the spine. Don't forget it!" She chided back, hiding a giggle when she saw all of his fingers bandaged from previous encounters from said book.

"Right, right." He mumbled, not paying attention when he saw Luna laying in the grass with her nargle-detecting glasses on and staring at nothing again, as they passed her. He sighed and fought with himself whether he wanted to go chat with her before class started. His nerves bested him and he continued to follow Harry and Ron, who were walking alongside Hermione, in defeat.

"I don't think he heard you." Harry said quietly to her side, looking back at Neville as they walked.

"Well, he'll have to learn the hard way then." She smiled towards him, "As always."

"Do you expect Hagrid.. I mean 'Professor Hagrid,'" Ron corrected himself with a grin, "Will be nervous? It's his first day, after all."

"Maybe, but we'll be there for moral support." Replied Harry. He looked back to Hermione and contemplated when would be an appropriate time to discuss why she has been absent so often before but suddenly ever present this past week. She was a mystery to him, and not like how most girls were. Seeing how prepped up and happy she seemed this morning drove away any questions he had at the present. He was just happy to have his friend back. Besides, she would open up to her best friends if she were in trouble. She could always count on them to back her up.

Changing the subject, Ron seemed nervous about their most recent class, "You don't think that Grim thing has got anything to do with Sirius Black, do you?"

"Oh honestly, Ron.. If you ask me, divinations is a very wooly discipline. Now.. Ancient Ruins: That's a fascinating subject."

"Ancient Runes? How many classes are you taking this term?"

"I say a few." She hesitated. No one was supposed to know about the Time Turner she had been using to get her through her multiple extension of classes. She felt ashamed for secretly using it once or twice to keep up with Draco's demands, as well, adding to her exhaustion last term.

"Hang on.. That's not possible. Ancient Ruins is in the same time as Divination. You'd have to be in two classes at once." He said skeptically.

"Don't be silly Ronald," She brushed off, "How could anyone be in two classes at once." She stated then continued on to say, "Broaden your minds," She laughed, "Use your inner eye to see the future!"

Once they reached Hagrid's hut, they saw all the other students filing in behind them. "Gather closer, now, don't be shy. I've go' a real treat for you today, a great lesson, so follow me." Hagrid welcomed. He walked off, making the students follow him towards a clearing in the trees. "Righ' you lo', less chattin'. Form a group over there and open your books to page 49." He turned away as they all gathered around.

"Exactly how do we do that." Malfoy spat at him, making him turn back around.

"Ye jus' stroke the spin o' course. Goodness." He turned around again, leaving Draco to look at his book in lack of interest. Holding the straps, he turned to the spine and stroke it, making the book relax at his touch. He looked back at Hagrid giving a small 'hmph' before walking past Neville.

Neville, who clumsily unclasped the belt to his copy of The Monster Book of Monsters, managed to get himself chewed up again, earning laughs from all the students still arriving to class.

"Don't be such a wimp, Longbottom." Malfoy jeered.

"I'm okay, I'm okay." He said breathily.

Hermione looked back at Malfoy and his group who looked to be up to no good then faced Harry saying quietly, "I think they're funny."

"Oh yeah, terribly funny," Draco cut in, "Really witty, as a matter of fact. God this place has gone to the dumps. Wait 'til my father hears Dumbledore's got this oaf teaching classes." Goyle laughed in his weird voice at that remark.

"Shut up Malfoy." Harry strode forwards.

"Hoo-" He laughed with his friends, passing his book to Goyle (who nearly dropped it) while Crabbe laughed from the other side. Draco casually walked towards Harry, sizing him up as he did so when he suddenly looked over Harry's shoulder and feigned a look of terror, "D-dementor, dementor!" He cried, causing Harry to whirl around in panic, causing the lot to laugh out loud. Draco could be a great actor when he wanted to be, he applauded himself before they whipped on their hoods and made spooky sounds when he faced them again.

Hermione went up and grabbed at Harry's arm, giving Draco a look of disgust. She was annoyed mostly at herself for ever wasting any time on that foul little git, she thought. Making sure to hide the small blush that began to tint her small face that unfortunately didn't escape Draco's attention this time. He smirked at the small victory.

"You're supposed to stroke it." Ron said exasperatedly when he saw the way Neville got his uniform all chewed up.

"Yeah.." He said in a high voice as he plopped the now-tame book on a rock beside him. His gran was going to have a fit when he would owl her for another new set.. Again.

Hagrid coughed to let everyone know it was time for the lesson to start, "Da-da-da-daaa!" He sing-sunged, displaying his arms out towards a winged horse with a giant bird for a head. Everyone's eyes popped at the intimidating creature before them. Hermione, on the other hand gave him a warm smile.

"Isn' he beautiful. Say hello.. to Buckbeak!" He threw a dead ferret at the beast which clucked up the stinking hide and swallowed it whole in a somewhat playful manner, making all sorts of bird like croaks. It was quite loud and echoed around the scared students.

"Hagrid.." Ron said astonished, "Exactly what is that?"

"That, Ron, is a hippogriff. First thing you wanna know abou' hippogriffs is that they're very proud creatures. Very easily offended. You do NOT want to insult a hippogriff. It may jus' be the las' thing you ever do." He carefully instructed.

Malfoy wasn't paying any attention, however. He was too busy appreciating Hermione from the back. Her hair was getting very long and was finally well maintained these days, smelling that familiar and addictive honey and strawberries he all too easily remembered from the Winter Ball. He slowly walked closer to her, never minding his fellow Slytherins who were too busy watching the scary beast in front of the Griffindors. She never noticed he was right beside her now.

"Now," he clapped his hands, "Who would like to come say hello?"

Draco grabbed at her arm angry that she ignored his presence after all that time they spent together and then the short time they had apart. He didn't like the look she gave him previously. He at least expected her to say hello to him, of all things. She startled at his touch and gave him a troubled look just as all the students took a step back, including Harry and Ron, leaving the two in the middle of the clearing.

"Hermio-" Ron hissed too late.

"Oh!" Hagrid exclaimed surprised at the odd pair standing before him. "Well done, Hermione. Erm, Malfoy.." He stammered. "Right, come on now." He said urging the two forwards, "Now.." he hesitated slightly before continuing the lecture, "You have to let him make the first move.." He warned the students, "It's only polite. So, step up, give him a nice bow. Then you wait, see if he bows back. If he does, you can go and touch him!"

"Touch him?!" Hermione whispered to no one though Draco heard her, also feeling slightly alarmed.

"Now, make your bow.." Hermione was the first to bow while Draco contemplated returning to the back of the group. He didn't want to keep appearing as a coward, however, which propelled him to follow along with this waste of a class.

"Nice and low," Hagrid commended, seeing Malfoy was playing along now. Buckbeak regarded the pair and sincerely contemplated what the blonde hair tasted like. It looked edible. He stepped forward on sharp front talons and snapped at the air. Hagrid saw this as a sign of aggression and said, "Back off Hermione, Malfoy, back off..!"

Hermione started to do as she was told but Malfoy knew better, secretly keeping hold of her arm and deepened his bow while he kept her at his side. She felt horrified but copied Malfoy in hopes his plan would work.

"Keep still.." Hagrid commended and to their immediate relief Buckbeack finally returned their bow.

Hagrid chuckled, "Well done, you two! Well done." He turned to the creature and threw another dead ferret at him. "Since he accepted the both of ye, you can now go and pat him now. Let him come to you.."

Hermione wanted to, but hesitated. She was still feeling very nervous. Draco huffed and pulled her steadily up to it and reached his hand towards the beast's beak, expecting nothing out of petting the dumb thing when suddenly Buckbeak lowered his head and pushed into his hand. He immediately felt a strange current emit from the beak and traveled down him arm and into his heart. The warmth then quickly spread to his other arm and into Hermione making her gasp and look at him in wonder.

"What was that?" She said that only Draco could hear. He hadn't the faintest idea but he might look into it if he felt compelled to later. Right now all he wanted to do was to pull her up to him and press her body into his like it had been a few times before. He suddenly missed the feeling.

"Well, done again! Well done." The students clapped for them. "You two can go ride him now." He motioned to them to get on.

"No!" Exclaimed Hermione right away. She had an intense fear of heights and the last thing she ever wanted to do was to ride a wild winged creature alongside Malfoy. The ferret might get the idea to dump her off at any notice.

"You best do it, pumpkin, or less he thinks you're rejecting him when Malfoy has his go. Why don't you two ride together so he can keep you on?" Hermione gave Ron and Harry a frightful look, while they exchanged glances at each other. Harry's jaw remained slack while Ron gave her a wave to say, 'go on, go on.' She gave him a deathly glare, before turning back to Hagrid who scooped her up and placed her in the front then immediately deposited Malfoy behind her. She felt loathing to the entire situation, muttering while gritting her teeth,

"Thanks for having my back, Ronald." Before she could spare another thought, Hagrid gave the Hippogriff's backside a good hard smack, after cheerfully mentioning they shouldn't pull out any of his feathers, sending him galloping through the trees as Hermione let out a small screech. Draco wrapped his arms around her middle to stop himself from falling off as the beast gained speed, spreading it's wings and jumping out and over the tree tops and the vast lake on the school grounds.

Hermione screamed as the strength of the pumping wings sent them higher until he soared them over the lake. Draco felt a rush of excitement yelling, "Yeah, haha!" It took her aback, having never heard him laugh with true joy like he just did, squeezing her tighter in back side hug. Her heart did a flip before she held on tighter to Buckbeak's neck, hoping to all that is good that she can stay on for the duration of the flight. Her heart raced for the adrenaline rush, for sure, but she would never admit there was entirely other reason it went wild and that reason was holding her very close from behind.

He wore the same cologne he did the night of the dance and it set loose a dozen butterflies in her stomach, making her forget to be afraid of the flight. An unexpected feeling bubbled up from her throat as she giggled with excitement, sitting more upright and she lifted her arms to feel the wind through her outstretched fingers. Buckbeak glided over the lake and touched it with a single talon.

Draco looked down and pointed down in front of them, gaining her attention. She saw about a dozen mermaids with long shark-like tails under the surface gliding beneath them. Their scales glittered blue and silver, some of them even had traces of gold. She felt utterly fascinated, never thinking she would see a sight like this.

The sun poked out through the clouds, illuminating the pair as they continued their flight. Hermione felt warmth at the back of her neck so she half turned only to regret it. Draco's face was right next to hers in kissing distance. He was slightly lowered over her, arms still entwined about her, as he took in the breath taking scene before them. When he noticed her looking, he looked back at her to see a concerned face staring back at him. He laughed again, creating a carefree smile that reached his eyes before holding her slightly tighter and looked out towards the mountains to the side.

Hermione's breath caught in her throat. She had never seen him make that face before. He looked younger and actually happy for once. It almost made her feel sad they had to fight all the time as natural school rivals. Why couldn't they be like this around each other instead? Life was too short, even shorter with the magical war going on and what not, for anyone their age to take it for granted like they were. It was a shame they all had to have such petty attitudes in front of their friends.

She considered saying something about this to him but she didn't want to spoil the moment. At least not yet.

Buckbeak touched back down after a while of more gliding about and slowed to a trot before stopping in front of Hagrid again.

"Great job, you two! Terrific!" Hagrid beamed, which Hermione nervously returned as he brought her down. Her legs felt like jelly and nearly gave out when a tall figure caught her in his embrace. Eyes shot up to have Draco back in her personal space again, this time her full blush couldn't be helped.

"G-Get off me, filthy mudblood!" He pushed her away from himself, instantly regretting it. Her blush faded and her expression turned to anger with a tell tale sign of hurt. He didn't want to be so cruel like he used to but he couldn't risk looking weak in front of his Slytherin comrades.

Ron stepped forward, having heard the loud insult (which didn't phase Buckbeak), "Hey you ugly ferret, get your claws off!" Buckbeak wasn't phased by Malfoy but instead grew aggressive towards the insults that seemed to be aimed at him.

"Buckbeak, no!" Hagrid panicked, fearing for the worst.

He screeched loudly, rearing up while flapping his wings and took a slice out of Ron's shoulder. His rearing knocked back into Malfoy, causing him to fall back, hitting his head on the sharp edge of a tall boulder behind him. Harry dragged Ron back to where the other students were as the boy groaned, clutching his shoulder in pain. Hermione was perplexed at Ron's stupidity, although truthfully not surprised, and her new concern over Malfoy of all people.

Ron wasn't bleeding too hard but still needed attending so she spoke loudly, "You need to take him to the Hospital Wing, Hagrid!"

"R-Right, okay. No body panic, everything is alright, jus' a simple misunderstandin' is all!" He walked over to Ron and scooped him up then turned to Hermione, "I can only carry one, I'll leave you in charge of escorting Malfoy there, too."

"B-but.. gah, okay. You can count on me, Professor." Hagrid was caught off guard with his new title as a teacher. He nearly forgot although a fat lot of good it did him considering his first day was already such a failure.

 **AN: I know, poor Ron! I just had to do that to him since he was going to be utterly useless later on anyway. I just couldn't stand having Malfoy make such a stupid mistake like provoking the Hippogriff since he had made a connection with him. I'm not worried about changing the story too much, there's always a way around things and it will work out just fine in the end! Our story is about Draco x Hermione anyway, right? We need to keep it very very interesting XD**

 **REVIEWS are a must. Please! Good or bad, I'll take whatever comes to your mind as the story continues! Every one of them will be taken into consideration for future chapters to help me shape this story! Remember they are all up for adoption since I'm not amazing at updating as frequently as I would like to, being a mom with all her work cut out to a T. Just please remember to message me if you do so I can see where you take the story, I'm very interested in your work! XOXO~ Anna :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: None of it is mine.. well some of it.. a teeny tiny bit. Hmph..**

 **Song Inspiration for this chapter: Shut Up (And Give Me Whatever You Got) – Amelia Lily**

Draco's POV:

Being placed on the back of the Hippogriff felt slightly humiliating but the feeling was soon extinguished the moment Hagrid slapped it's backside, making Draco grab around Hermione's middle while she squealed in fright. His senses were plagued by both the rush of taking off in flight under the strong thrusts of the beasts wings and the delicate sent of honey and strawberries. Who knew that smell could override his current feelings of malice towards the mudblood and her tight knit circle of friends. He wasn't angry at her as much as we was enticed yet frustrated he was losing control over his feelings for the girl. The ride was thrilling in more ways than one, creating a tight sensation in his trousers he hoped to God she wouldn't notice or else she might take an early exit off this endeavor. As they rode higher and panned out into a solid glide he suddenly heard her make an entirely new sound he only ever heard from a distance. Heck he could even feel the giggle coming up from her core and out through those sweet lips. It was like heaven.

Forgetting the disposition between the two rivals, he decided to enjoy himself as he looked about, easily abandoning his Slytherin antics of that morning. Without warning, Hermione let go of it's neck and spread her arms out wide on each side giving less room between the two. He couldn't stop himself from laughing when he saw her looking back at him with an entirely different expression than she usually wore for him. She seemed happy, making the feeling mutual for him, as well.

What came after the ride, however, was completely unexpected. The Weasely idiot just had to stir shit up getting himself slashed at while knocking Draco down, hitting his head on some stupid hard surface, causing him to momentarily black out. When he came to he found himself looking up at a blurry upside down face that was saying something to him but the sound was muted in his state. His head was laying on something soft while a cool hand pressed against his forehead. Slowly he sat up, feeling a dull throbbing in his skull and ringing in his ears. His head spun slightly but he recovered quickly enough to realize his head had been resting on Granger's lap and it was her worried face he had been looking at. He turned to look at her as something warm dripped from his hairline over the side of his face, earning a muffled gasp from her.

"Draco, you're bleeding!" Hermione searched through her back and pulled out a clean kerchief she used to dab at his forehead. He didn't wince because he was too distracted at the use of his first name from her. It sounded nice.

"Careful, you wouldn't want your lovers to get the wrong idea.." He teased with contempt. He really didn't like to see those trouble makers around his pet.

"Oh, hush. Harry already left with Ron and the Professor to go to the hospital wing. You should go, too."

He waved his hand, "No need, I'll be fine." To this he dragged himself off the ground and nearly stood when the world turned and he found himself grabbing her arm for support.

"No, you won't be. Come with me, you're going to see Pomfrey."

"Like hell, I won't, mu-" He stopped himself from calling her the name. Why did he do that? "Unless you want your little secret out, you can't make me."

"Ugh! Why are boys my age always so childish.." She mumbled to herself, letting him use her for support as she led them both towards the school.

XoXoXo

It was a while later they found themselves in the empty Slytherin common room, per his stubborn request. All the other students were off to class if they weren't skipping to go hang about the school grounds, making a silent atmosphere for the two all alone. Hermione never thought she would find herself here of all places but she still had the deal between herself and Draco. 'Curse that blasted clutch. I just _had_ to leave that newspaper clipping inside of it..'

The interior of the room was vastly different from the Gryffindor common room. The couches were upholstered in black leather, rather than the cozy red velvet couches and wing-backed chairs and drapes she was used to. In the side was a long dark wood table and fancy matching chairs spaced around it. The drapes and just about everything else were all black and dark green. Fitting for such a dark house, Hermione thought. She felt completely out of place here.

Draco had his head rested back on the couch, waiting to for the ache to subside more although hermione's healing charms did a lot of good. It was to his good fortune she was such a talented witch. She hovered over him until she saw him relax more, appearing to be asleep. She took advantage of his relaxed demeanor, as she was sitting by him, to study his features more from up close. His elegant sharp nose, his strong jawline that framed his well shaped lips. She had to shake her head to rid her straying thoughts.

Then out of the blue there was a clamor near the entrance. Draco's eyes flew open and grabbed Hermione off the couch in an instant, forcing her and himself being one of the large drapes in the back of the room. The position was awkward, making them face each other as he pressed her back against the cold stone wall.

"What are you doing?!" She whispered. He clearly didn't need to hide there with her but it was too late for him to back out now or else they would be caught. The commotion was a group of rowdy Slytherins who just got out of class.

"Did you _see_ how that filth put his head in her lap?" Pansy whined, making Hermione tense beneath him. They were talking about her. "When that oaf Professor told her she was in charge of him I just about hexed him! No one should comfort my dear Draky-Bear but me, dammit." Hearing the nickname made Hermione choke back a laugh when she felt a large warm hand cover her mouth. She looked up startled at Draco, whom, she discovered was very very close to her. Did it just get twenty degrees hotter or was it just her?

"Did you hear that?" Millicent spoke, looking about. Hermione's face heated into a blush as her eyes grew larger. Draco found it slightly charming but kept still, holding his breath. His heart kicked up a notch which he hoped didn't betray the cold persona he usually kept. Now would be a poor time to lose his cool in front of the little mouse.

Pansy tsk'd audibly, "You're just hearing things, twat. Don't interrupt me when I'm venting!"

They couldn't see Millicent roll her eyes at her so-called friend. Honestly, she had such a large stick up her ass sometimes but she just dealt with it, as always.

The scene was playing out rather too long, to Draco's discomfort. He didn't mind being this close to her but he was steadily losing control over his himself. He just about burst out of there when he turned his head the other way to stretch his neck a little when his lips collided with Hermione's temple. It was nearly like a kiss, for Merlin's sake, and she didn't take it too well. He had to push harder against her, using his hands to hold down her arms, while he had to quietly convince her he wasn't doing anything funny. He bit back a groan when she shifted a little, rubbing against his lower half with her leg. That did the horrid trick. He couldn't contain himself any more as each thread to his will broke free.

XoXoXo

Hermione was perplexed she ended up in such a shameful situation. Here she was with her backside rammed up between a cold stone wall and a hard place. Well, _two_ hard places she could certainly feel now. Malfoy was dead silent all the while, she doubted he was even breathing, he was so quiet. Her arms were held down by his strong grip and her body was pressed flush against his as they awaited for the hair-brained Slytherins to finally leave.

They were both in agreement that being caught together in the Slytherin dorm was in no way acceptable but the position they were in now was flat out ridiculous. Imagine if they were caught _like this?!_ It would be the talk of the whole school, for crying out loud. She didn't think Ron or Harry would even try to understand how she even got wrapped up in this horrible mess. She was known for being _clever_ , not _stupid._

"Pans, I don't think Draco's coming down this way. It's already been an hour!" Millicent groaned. She was becoming so bored at this waiting game. "Maybe he headed to the hospital wing after all?"

"Fine!" She threw her hands up. "Let's go check there and then head to dinner. I'm half starved anyway." She stood up from the couch and strode to the entrance, Millicent on her tail.

"You're always 'half-starved' why don't you just eat more at once then maybe you won't gripe so much." Millicent offered, getting a harsh glare from her friend. "Just saying!"

Hermione and Draco simultaneously sighed out loud.

"That couldn't have been any more awkward." She mused, pushing to leave their hiding place but she was stopped to look down and stared at him, stating, "My arms, please."

Draco looked down a little surprised to find he was still holding on tight. His face hardened, "Oh, right." He back away letting go. "You can see yourself out." He stated, pivoting then walked straight to the boys chambers without looking back. He needed another cold shower today.

Hermione watched as he left, feeling a little confused at his reaction just now. Rubbing her arms where his hands had been, she walked to the couch, picking up her bloodied kerchief, cast a cleaning charm on it making it appear to be pristine white like before, and walked out of the Slytherin common room.

XoXoXo

They made it to the weekend without so much as a word or a glance at each other. Malfoy had loads of time on his hands since he hardly felt the need to seek out his pet. He had a rather large dose of her that last fateful day and it took quite a few cold showers to seek peace with his raging hormones. He didn't even bother relieving himself with any of the pure blooded girls who threw themselves at him throughout the days. His new found fame in the school wasn't turning out to be as great as he was expecting for all he wanted nowadays was peace and solidarity. Even his guitar practice wasn't helping calm his nerves. He was at an impasse.

He had enough of those games he played with the mudblood. In his break from her he discovered what it was that bothered him so much. He had an addiction. With her. Every moment longer he spent away from her felt like murder. Even his dreams were plagued with the same scene playing over and over again, stuck behind that blasted drape he had to be taunted with every time he passed the common room. It was the elephant in the room that stared him down even at his attempts to ignore it. If that wasn't bad enough his dreams kept ending with the same result: Hermione would push him away in rejection and he would be left there behind the curtain all alone shroud in darkness. It nearly felt as though it were a bad omen, though luckily he didn't believe in them therefore refused to be swayed. He knew what he wanted now, blast anyone who would try and stop him. Not even Hermione herself will refuse him if he could help it.

Making up his mind on what he would do he pulled himself out of his green draped four-poster bed and took a quick shower. He pulled out a pair of black slacks, and a black button up shirt leaving the top button undone, and threw on the latest fashionable black cloak he bought in a high end wizarding shop. Once he reached the table in the common room he quickly summoned a small bit of parchment, quill and ink, and hastily scrawled something on separate letters before leaving the room at once, to head for the owlery. 'You better watch out, mudblood, because once my plans for you are in motion, there's no escape.' He thought evilly to himself, pulling the black hood up to conceal his identity.

 **AN: Short chapter, wah! Cliffie, oh no! Draky-Bear's so determined now that he finally figured out his feelings. Hermione's in trouble~! Mwahahahahaaaaa XD I just couldn't help myself!**

 **Please REVIEW for the sake of my own sanity. I know you guys are there, lurking about (I do that, too sometimes). I don't care what you say if it can help this story be as real as possible. Or even just a quick, "hey I read your story!" Kind of thing, it propels me to keep going!**

 **I know I'm kind of skipping about the story line from the books so of course I labeled this as an AU story to be safe, hehe. ;) The movie helps me keep there characters a little more original and intriguing/familiar thus making the chapters flow a bit better. I mean, come on, _someone_ has to complain about classes or else this wouldn't feel like a school setting at all, right?! Anyway, see you next chapter! I have something that's pretty intense coming up ^^**


	4. Chapter 4

**I don't own this**

 **Chapter 4**

Hermione was in her favorite secret hiding place stashed behind piles of books. The previous encounters with Draco were pretty ordinary and expected, she thought. Good. She liked it when things were predictable like her classes, receiving full marks on all her assignments and exams, the delicious meals at the Great Hall, and the like. What she didn't expect happen next, however, was when a medium sized onyx owl suddenly appeared at the window next to her, furiously tapping on the panes to catch her attention. She snapped her attention over her shoulder and wondered what it could be about to get the owl to behave in such a manner. Without further hesitation, she whisked her want out and performed the charm she recited from the back of her mind with no effort, expertly unlocking and opening the window to let the creature in. It's wing beat about, knocking over a carefully placed tall stack of books and parchment flew all over, messing up her hair and hitting the wand out of her hand which fell to the floor and rolled under the table. It dropped a small folded letter in her hands and pecked at her shoulder insisting for something from her. With a grumble, she dug through her bookbag and took out a small handful of treats. It pecked at her shoulder once more than nibbled at the treats once or twice. She could have sworn it sent her a glare, as if saying 'what kind of rubbish is this?!' then it dove right back out the window.

"God, picky, much?" She said to the open window, a crisp Spring breeze ruffled the letter she had to catch before it flew away with her now scattered notes. She quickly opened it and gasped, abruptly standing and knocking her chair over, as she read the short message. _Someone is hurt and needs me at the quiddich pitch?_ It didn't give her a name, or any other information and the writing seemed vaguely familiar yet scratched as if the writer was in a hurry. It surely explained the temperament of the owl.

Hermione bolted from the library in hopes that Harry or Ron hadn't put themselves in danger yet again during their practice. They had such a knack for that. She didn't know they had already started so early in the season but of all the things she knew, quiddich wasn't a cup of tea to her tastes even though she went to all the Gryffindor matches in support of her friends.

Little did she know someone was watching her, from their own secluded table at the library, hurry off with worry plastered on her face. She didn't even have her bookbag or any of her usual arm load of books she always left the library with. He quickly got up, scrambling to remember his wand, and followed her out.

Once she arrived to the field she immediately deducted something was off. The field was empty. She thought her presence was requested so that she could assist in any healing that may be required. Deciding they must have already departed for the Hospital Wing, she turned back around in the entrance only to be blocked off. Unfortunately she didn't react fast enough when she collided into a darkly cloaked figure that was taller than her by at least a head and their outstretched arm wrapped around her from falling onto her backside.

"S-So sorry!" She went to pass them but they stopped her this time, "I'm in a hurry, I need to get to the Hospital Wing. Someone's been hurt!" But they didn't budge an inch.

She looked up in frustration to try and explain further without inducing a fight when she froze. Their features were masked but a tall black hood although she could see their face. There weren't many girls that tall let alone had such muscular arms so she easily figured it to be a boy however his robes appeared well tailored and not of school uniform issued, proven by the lack of house insignia embroidered over the heart. That was all she could see besides black scaled dress shoes that shone with prestige, making her tremble slightly. It certainly wasn't a professor, they weren't paid well enough for such fine clothes. Dread climbed up her back in fears it could be a Death Eater, though how on earth did they get on school grounds? If nothing else gave her a hint it was the deep trill of his lowered voice that sent her on edge. She knew that voice..

"Look who just keeps 'bumping' into me? Honestly _Hermione_ that's turning into quite an annoying habit. Luckily, for you, I think it's starting to grow on me." He smirked.

She never had the chance to push through his arms before he pushed her back into the stone wall of the entrance to the pitch, placing large hands on either side of her person, effectively blocking her escape.

"Let me through.." She grit through her teeth, attempting to remain calm and in control of the situation. Her hand carefully inched inside of her robes.

"Why should I," he laughed venomously, "so you can play hero for your friends? Auror doesn't suit you but you would look quite nice in a _Healer's_ getup."

She narrowed her eyes at him when it dawned on her, "That was your owl, wasn't it?" She couldn't believe she fell for another one of his tricks, 'How could I have been so _stupid ?'_ She scolded herself.

"Ah! Ha-ha, I would love to but in this case I have to disagree with you level of stupidity. You're quite clever, as your reputation allows, although you can be too thick when it comes to aiding your friends. Seriously, you should quit them while you're ahead. They're only holding you back." His knee came up between her legs then, pinning her against the wall for good this time.

She continued to glare at the figure, speechless at how he managed to read her mind as if he knew her so well.

He continued on, to her dismay, "You would do much better with smarter company, you know.." He began to lean forward ever so dangerously close. She could see him lick his lips, feel his hot breath on her face, the hood came close enough to hover over her, gaining her access to his identity, confirming her belief.

"Calling yourself _smart, Draco?_ " Her hand came upon an empty wand pocket. _Shite!_ It was still in the library under the table where it had fallen after the situation with the bloody bird. He didn't listen, having enough of their verbal games, and leaned further, his hooded blue eyes sparked like dark magic. He smelled like cinnamon and something else she couldn't begin to describe, sending electricity through her core. He closed in for the kill when suddenly..

"Expelliarmus!" Someone shouted, a flash of light sent Draco flying backwards. Hermione felt momentary relief someone had rescued her for once, yet that feeling flew out of her the moment he landed on his feet, striking his assailant down with the stupefy spell blindingly fast.

She didn't take that small moment for granted, though, as she threw herself through the door, picking up anything she could find she might foolishly protect herself with. Of course, of all things luck granted her with the only thing she managed to find was a solemn broomstick neglected to be locked away after the last quiddich practice. The blasted thing looked worn out and ready to retire, making her curse herself for having such rotten luck.

She looked back, to her regret, only to see Malfoy staring directly at her with hungry, predator-like, eyes. Her body trembled at the fair idea of what would happen next. As if on cue, she flung her leg over the broom and kicked off the ground with all her might, her magic added a little boost, as if sensing her fright, sending her hurtling towards the school.

Malfoy wasn't angry at their interruption in the slightest. No. He was thrilled. With a dark chuckle, he casted him wand towards the broom closet and silently 'accio'-ed his lasted black broom model, Nimbus 2001. The closet opened with tremendous force, causing the doors to explode off into pieces as the broom expertly flew into his outstretched hand.

Swinging his own leg over the broom he darkly chuckled to himself, "Let the games begin.."

 **A/N: Sorry short chapter again, gosh, I need to come up with some decent fillers I know, but I hate beating about the bush for the action! The action man, I'm in dire need of that shit. No offense, I love a good story that has about 10 filling pages between each action sequence, but that's where my impatience sets in. Especially when I read a thrilling story that's promising things to get real (rated M, hint-hint) and then NOTHING happens and not only that but I look at the last update to discover they haven't posted for like 3 years! OMG that means it will never get to the fun stuff that I was building up to for like.. forever in 40-100 chapters of 'next→' clicking madness! I want the goodies, gimme! SO, with that being said, I just want to get to the good stuff before my inspiration dies out on me. Am I right or am I right, folks?! Vent over. Ahhh….. I'm such a hypocrite at this aren't I? Yes.. yes I am T-T**


	5. Chapter 5

**I don't own this**

 **Thanks for the reviews, I'd love to see more! Gimme gimme! JK anyway, things are about to get heated in here, out there.. everywhere! Gah! On to the story..**

 **Chapter 5**

Hermione flew headfirst towards the castle, her breathing stuck in her throat where she could feel her heart pounding wildly, but she wasn't paying attention to that. No. She had to get to the castle. She had to report Malfoy this time, his games were getting far too carried away. Damn the rumors, she could survive them. She couldn't say the same about her virtue if things kept progressing at this rate. The worst part was.. she enjoyed the feeling of his proximity closing in.

She felt a rush of excitement at his advances over the last few months, all starting with that ridiculous ball. His strong graceful moves on the dance floor, his seductive voice when he sang, his towering lean figure. She never saw him with his shirt off but the curiosity was nagging at her mind worse than her perpetual fear of losing marks on an assignment. He impressed her with his cunning intellect and was dominating her senses. Every time he entered a room, her attention would rip away from her studies. Even her friends noticed she was looking over at the other tables far more often than what they found normal, and for no reason at all. She could never tell them what was going on before but she realized with dread things will only get worse if she held back any longer. She had to get to Dumbledore. He could get Malfoy off her tail and then she would be at peace. Well, besides helping Harry and Ron with all their dangerous side activities. No, it's final, she decided. _I will NOT_ _meddle with the enemy!_

She just about reached the gate when her victory was cut short. A black cloaked figure rushed past her in a blur and blocked her route once more, forcing her to flip over her broom and stop in time to prevent them from colliding. His open arms stayed empty, however, as she rocketed away just from his reach. He was startled for only a moment before he sped off in hot pursuit, he was determined to catch her, whatever it took. He refused to be made a fool this time.

' _Just what does that bloody ferret want from me?'_ She panicked to herself, barely escaping his clutches. She pointed her broom directly towards the forbidden forest, thinking quickly back to all his fears and cowardice actions in the past. If she was going to shake him it was going to take the cleverness of a strong willed witch and the blanket of his worst fears to make that happen. She dived into the thick of the trees, angling her best through all the branches and large trunks as she went. Flying was not her strongest skill but that's not what she hoped to outdo him with. Unfortunately, it was still morning so she had to make do without the blackness of night which would have added much effect to her cause.

It took much mental strength from her to fly in these conditions. Her skills were not so well honed compared to her classmates but you had to give her credit for being a quick study. Flying was, above all, her least favorite subject. Her face collected scratches and her hands and arms received several nicks and gashes from all the leaves and brush she plowed through. In the heat of her panic, the adrenaline carried her farther than she had ever traveled in such a short span of time. She needed to reserve her energy if she wanted to get through this so she instinctively searched for somewhere to hide.

Hermione finally found a gathering of boulders, with sticky brush surrounding what would make a perfect hiding place among the large rocks. She quietly slowed in midair to a stop over the place she found and dropped herself with a quick thud in the brush. It stuck to everything but she had no time to complain there was a battering of branches and leaves coming directly towards her surroundings before it all came to a sickening silence. One hand held her broom to the ground, her grip still tight in case she needed to make a run for it. She felt overwhelmed with the need to get out of there but her better judgement told her to hold still. She didn't know how much more of this she could take. Her heart pounded in her ears now, a steady BUM-DUM-BUM-DUM. Her knuckles and face were slowly dripping blood, how she wished she could silence her heart as she controlled her breathing, making dots swim in her vision. _Do not pass out. Do not pass out._

In the near distance she could hear faint panting of breath, a shadow fell upon the thickly matted earth gently, without a sound, moving towards the space between the trees in nearest to her. Her eyes clamped shut and she lowered herself impossibly more to the ground, glad she already hit her pale legs beneath her school robes before he got there.

Time ticked on until he seemed to have moved on, making her release her breath, quietly shivering. It was still chilly out but she breathed slow enough to not create a mist. His voice, stopped her breathing altogether.

"You can't hide from me, pet. I can smell you out with a simple but effective spell."

 _Oh, no._ She worried. She forgot he was in her DADA class and was particularly attentive during one of their classes where they learned how to track game in case they were forced to live in the wild for an extended amount of time. You could use the base word "track" and "smell" mixed with a word associating with what you're hunting for and it will lead you there. Hermione was perturbed he would use this method on her and yet was strangely curious what word he would use to describe her.

" _Suavis Olen, Investigo!"_ He yelled for maximum effect.

A candied red line shimmered from the tip of his wand and gradually made their way through the air, towards the ground. He lowered his hover until his feet met the soil covered in old leaves and patches of still melting snow. He carefully propped his broom against a tree, his eyes never leaving the growing line, occasionally drifting in the breeze but still came back to one particular direction. He had her now..

Stepping closer to her position, Hermione felt trapped. _This is it._ Her mind reeled. _Time to make it or break!_ With haste, she clutched to broom close to herself and jumped on it, vaulting straight towards a break in the trees, making Draco jump back from her sudden departure from the ground.

Cursing to himself, Malfoy ran to his broom and raced after her through the clearing in the leaves. _He's so close! So close, so close, I'm going to die!_ Her thoughts flooded her brain. With all her might, she desperately thought of anywhere, anywhere at all she could go on this outdated old broom, but her mind drew a blank as she sped towards the sky.

 _Where does she think she's going?_ Wondered Malfoy, but his face grew worried, _knowing_ just how bad her fear of heights were, yet she didn't slow down or even tried to change course she just kept going UP. _She's gone mad!_

Further she climbed and further he pursued, gaining on her every second. Her mind was rattled, her panic was reaching it's peak, choking the air to her lungs as her throat closed up. She was losing momentum. FAST. She looked back again to see apprehension in his eyes, he was that close, so she gave a final boost. Her vision was blinking in and out and her hands started to grow numb while drops of blood streamed down her hands and arms from her recent scratches. Her legs felt like jelly by this point. In her last ditch effort, she attempted to redirect the broom in a dive but in that moment her hand gave out and lost their grip on her broom, having lost all feeling in her arms.

It was in that crucial moment.. Time stood still.

Hermione, for the first time in her life, got a sickening feeling of weightlessness. Her hair came undone in a mess of curls about her face, her arms and legs grew limp. The broom was already gone and falling to the earth in doom. Her eyes dimmed until she had fallen completely unconscious in her struggles to escape capture. Her body slowly floated downwards until it crashed into something beneath her, sending her toppling down all so unaware of her demise, yet to come.

 **A/N: Two chapters in one day! The suspense is killing me, too. I'm so happy I took notes on my ideas at least a week ago or else these chapters would have never come out like they are now! I'm getting better at this~~yayyy! I'll do my best to keep going!**

 **Suavis Olen Invenstigo in latin roughly translates to: sweet smelling, track (I think?). Hehehe. I liked the sound of it and know Draco thinks of Hermione's scent as sweet since she does smell like honey and strawberries. Put track and smells sweet together and you've found her! Woot woot!**


	6. Chapter 6

**I don't own this**

 **Chapter 6**

 **Song Inspiration for this Chapter (nearing end of flight scene): That's Not Me- Aaron Yan**

 **Draco's POV**

He headed to the Quiddich field, black cloak hood drawn, hiding his identity. No one would suspect his presence striding ominously forwards, evil intent cast into his every step. Not long after he arrived did he witness a young witch with a beautiful mess of curls pass him, hidden within the shadows. She would belong to no other, he would make that known today.. Starting with her.

He watched her look around and make her swift conclusions about what had happened. He noticed she wore her uniform on the weekend. He surmised it had to do with keeping her mindset in her studies. A psychological attempt to keep focus, he would have no problem dispelling. She turned around, hands fussing nervously in her robe pockets, when he made his move.

She abruptly collided into him as he stepped out, blocking her feeble exit from the field, "S-So Sorry!" She apologized to him, trying to step around him. He chuckled inwardly, she could be so easily distracted from her whereabouts. Before she could angle herself around him, offering an excuse to her hurry, he stopped her from going further. Her silhouette was quite small in contrast to his own. He liked that. It was obvious she didn't know just who she was talking to so he decided to play with her a little before initiating his truly dark plans he had in store for her.

"Look who just keeps 'bumping' into me? Honestly _Hermione_ that's turning into quite an annoying habit. Luckily, for you, I think it's starting to grow on me." He grinned at her. He liked saying her name, he could see the way it unnerved her. Her eyes seemed to contemplate something. The puzzle was only starting to form in her head. He guessed it wouldn't take her very long to unravel the mystery to her dark admirer. He had to work fast.

"Let me through.." She gritted.

"Why should I," he laughed venomously, "so you can play hero for your friends? Auror doesn't suit you but you would look quite nice in a _Healer's_ getup." Yes, her mind was working quite progressively to his comments. Would she figure out just _why_ he thought she would make a pretty little healer?

Realization washed over her face just then, "That was your owl, wasn't it?" Then muttered to herself, _"How could I have been so stupid?"_ He didn't think she was stupid at all, quite the contrary. If it weren't for her heritage he thought she would have made a fine Slytherin. If only her pesky friends would stop getting in the way. He would deal with them later, for now he had to act fast if he wanted his design to play out perfectly, it was in his nature.

"Ah! Ha-ha, I would love to but in this case I have to disagree with you level of stupidity." He shoved her back mercilessly towards a stone wall in the entrance. Towering over her, he continued, "You're quite clever, as your reputation allows, although you can be too thick when it comes to aiding your friends. Seriously, you should quit them while you're ahead. They're only holding you back." He leaned towards her now, bringing a knee up between her short skirt, slightly hiking it up in the process. Oh how he wished it were his hand there instead. _No need to rush things just yet,_ he chided himself, though he could feel the hunger inside wearing his patience thin.

She kept her glare up towards his face, inviting him closer. Her sweet smell intoxicated him making things rather uncomfortable below. He had it pressed to her hip now, reveling in the way her body trembled at his touch. _So close now._ Her left hand was pressing his left shoulder firmly but he could feel the way her energy depleted under his dominance. He had half a mind to grind into her but he wanted to get his intent across her directly. He wanted Hermione for more than _just_ her body after all. He wanted all of her. To not just be a pet to his whims but a slave to his passions. He nearly growled at the longing.

"You would do much better with smarter company, you know.." He began to lean forward ever so dangerously close. He wanted, no, _needed_ to kiss her. He licked his lips, angling his head and went in for the kill. Her eyes were angry at him but he could see the tell tale of a flutter as they were about to close, about to betray her vehemence for him.

Out of nowhere another student flung 'Expelliarmus' at his body, throwing him back yet failed to make him do more than land gracefully in a predatory crouch. _Well, that was unexpected,_ he mused. _Perhaps a first year?_ Based on the weakness of the spell. He looked at his attacker only to inwardly laugh, _of course, Neville. The bottom feeder was a disgrace to the wizarding world, the proof was in his punch._ He easily threw a hex at the boy, effectively disarming him and knocking him out as a bonus.

He turned his head towards a startled Miss Granger who had inched away, adding the distance between the pair, who then fled after seeing the look in his eyes. She grabbed a discarded broom he didn't think she would use, remembering how she hated flying since their first year class with Madam Hooch, and kicked off at her head start in fleeing from him. He should have thought that through more, it grated on his nerves. He shrugged it off with his wand at the ready. _She wants to play this way? I'm more than game._ The sensation of playing 'cat and mouse' gave him a thrill. After all, she was his little mouse.

With a flick of his wrist, he sent for his broom, making the storage closet doors burst open into fragments at command. It flew directly into his clutch and he saddled the broom. "Let the games begin." He smirked. With expert force from his magic, he thrust off the ground through the field gates and flew directly after her.

XoXoXo

As Draco flew hot on his pet's tail, he noticed how remarkably fast she was flying despite the shape of her rickety old broom. That thing looked more ready to be used as firewood, not for flying on. He became grateful towards his father's bribes to the school, allowing him to become the seeker. It wasn't his ideal way of making the team, to be honest, his skill was by far more adequate than necessary to make the team. The expensive latest broom models were simply the cherry on top, he liked to tell himself, ignoring the strike to his pride. His father liked making a show of support for his son, not understanding the effort made him appear incompetent. He secretly held a grudge against him for that, adding the fuel to the rage he felt every time those brambling idiots in Gryffindor house poked fun at him, calling him a coward or daddy's boy every godforsaken chance they got. He would show them he could get what he wanted, regardless how others felt. He didn't need their opinions for he had his own and they were all that mattered to him now.

The speed of his finely crafted broom allowed him to catch up to Hermione in no time, even passing her to purposely block her escape route again. He felt triumphant! But the feeling flew away quite astonishingly in the other direction along with the brown haired witch as she somehow managed to maneuver out of his range and redirected herself to go hurtling towards the forbidden forest, prolonging the game. _Blast._ He had expected her to stop at the school by this point so they could at least continue their heated argument, throw angry words with hot tears at him, threaten him, anything! Anything but this, knowing she did not like flying. Apparently she preferred risking her neck flying versus dealing with him head on. His jaw dropped for a moment, at her incredibly unforeseen flying skills, but he quickly remembered himself and grit his teeth to follow her in her haste. And to think he had the upper hand in this battle, which was his exact reasoning for choosing the Quiddich field to layout his trap for her, however he was sorely mistaken. After this day's events he decided to never underestimate his clever little witch again.

He felt a rush as his chase commenced, their momentum carrying them directly into the dense expanse of trees spread among the school grounds and turned into the horrid forbidden forest. He hadn't taken her for someone to so willingly break a school rule like this, she must be desperate to evade him. His need to catch her grew the further they drove on, no matter the danger or repercussion. Little did she know their escapade did nothing but make him want her even more. Her will to fight was so strong, the way her cheeks flushed for him every time he was near. It drove him mad until he craved her like a drug.

He followed her closely, winding dangerously round every tree, branch, and more. She must have been more familiar in these parts of the woods as they flew over a lake until he nearly lost sight of her. It only took a matter of seconds where he suddenly couldn't see her at all, making him slow down and rethink a new strategy. That was when he heard it. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. No no branches whipping back from hitting her, no more sounds the wind makes when someone is flying ahead. _Did she stop to hide?_ That must have been the case. He slowed even further to listen carefully now for any traces of someone hiding until he came across a cluster of large boulders and a clearing of trees. _She couldn't be far,_ he decided. He feigned passing through to circle back and recheck the area. He had a sneaking suspicion and his gut was usually right. Then an idea came to his mind. It would surely be a surprise to her as she didn't know just how well he paid attention in class when in came to specific spells..

"You can't hide from me, pet. I can smell you out with a simple but effective spell." _If I'm just talking to myself then I'll feel foolish but it's worth a shot._ He shrugged off the hint of doubt as he lowered himself to the ground and rested his broom against one of the trees behind him, brandishing his wand in the meantime.

" _Suavis Olen, Investigo!"_ He yelled, intricately waving his wand. It required a certain finess, something he was very capable of performing.

As expected, a red line like vapor whisking through the breeze dispersed from the tip, directing him towards the person he had thought of clearly in his mind. Well, it was more colored towards the smell he remembered most about her. His new favorite, might I add. He inched forwards, careful to not make a sound. Step after step he drew near the cluster of boulders. _Got you._

He got very close when she jumped up behind a sticky bush, her cloak had unclasped and stuck to the bush where she quickly threw it off and climbed her broom. He hardly had a chance to react to this and cursed himself for putting his broom down. He should have held on to the damn thing! She proved to be quicker witted once again. He ran to his broom and leaped into the air in her direction through the break in the canvas of leaves. She may try another go towards the school for anywhere else would only end badly.. for her.

Hermione managed to surprise him once more for all the directions she could have gone she only chose one. UP.

"Wha- Oh, bloody hell, Granger!" But she couldn't hear him. The wind had kicked up as she encouraged her broom to fly even faster than they had gone before, especially now that there weren't any obstacles. Perhaps she tried to best his courage but he knew there was one serious flaw to this plan. _She's deathly afraid of heights._ Apprehension didn't fail to show on his face. He wasn't worried for himself as much as he was worried for her. _What is she trying to do?_ He thought in alarm.

It all happened so fast, he hated himself for not reacting sooner. They had flown very high at this point and out of nowhere she actually let go of her broom! Her broom shot up in momentum before stopping to fall to the side as her body fell straight down. Right back towards him. He couldn't even brace himself for the impact in time as her back slammed into his chest. Her weight pummeled into him hard enough to knock him off his own broom, his right hand luckily kept a good grip in the middle of it and his left hand made to grab for her wrist. It couldn't hold from the weight of her fall caused her to slip from his grasp.

His heart stopped. "Noo!" He yelled helplessly.

Letting his broom drop from the air, still in his hand as he free fell after her. He expertly lowered it underneath himself and straddled it and coursed his magic through it to propel himself after her as fast as he dared. His ears whistled deafeningly from the rush of the wind passing his face. He could see her face now, in between flicks of her hair covering and uncovering it, and realized why she had let go. Her limp figure hurtled at an alarming rate towards the five-story tall trees.

He drew his wand in panic, _"Arresto Momentum!"_ He yelled with all his might, luckily aiming true as he saw her decline slightly slow down. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to stop her from disappearing through the tree tops. _Shit! Shit! Fuck, Merlin, no!_ His eyes were watering from the force of flying and something else entirely.

He broke through the canopy directly after her, barely avoiding branches though what he heard made his heart lurch to his throat. Sounds of a few branches breaking dispersed below him, making him quickly change route. It made him sick but it helped him find her in time before her body could hit the ground. In one fell swoop he clung to her middle, bringing the both of them up to redirect their momentum sideways rather than straight down, but it was too fast. The nimbus collided with a tree, sending them toppling over each other, Hermione hugged tight in his protective embrace until they finally came to a rest.

His mind had blinked out as it kept spinning but he eventually came to. The first thing he did was to prop her in his lap and hold her close. Her looked at her closed eyes and cupped her face saying over and over again, "Hermione. Hermione! Wake up. Please wake up. Don't mess with me you stupid, beautiful, git. I promise to make your life hell if you don't answer me right now!" Tears threatened to fall as he rocked her gently, holding her close. Of all the things he wanted to happen to the stuck up know-it-all he never wanted her to die.

 **Is the suspense killing you, yet? It's killing me and I'm the one writing this! Gahh! NO, I will not waste this sweet little AN space to give you any spoilers. Maybe I am cruel enough to kill off Hermione. You just have to find out for yourselves! Mwahahahahaha X'D REVIEW if you want the next chapter, my darlings! ~MyDarkness**


	7. Chapter 7

**I own nothing besides my own OC**

 **Chapter 7**

It wasn't supposed to happen like this.

Draco meant to push her a little. A prank, if you may. He never wanted her to die. He lowered his face to hers, a stray tear landing on her pale face. Her body was growing colder in the chill. He had his cloak draped around her in hopes to somewhat preserve her. He had checked her breathing but it had grown still. He laid her down and began compressing her chest and breathed into her soft cold lips. _Their first kiss._ It was not what he had been imagining at all when he planned to pursue her. His little witch really meant it when she said she's rather die than be seen consorting with the likes of him. His efforts at resuscitation brought no effect. His heart had sunk impossibly low, filling his soul with dread and loss.

" _NO,_ I refuse to give up.. Not when you had so much to give!" Determined, he placed her down and searched madly for his wand. He had lost in in their tumble to the earth. He closed his eyes and strongly focused opening his hand and feeling for the pull. _There._ It whipped from under so leaves and flew directly into his grasp.

Turning immediately, he wracked his brain for any strong healing spells he knew. _She needs to breath_ _e_ _! What can make her breath_ _e_ _?_ He knew no spells for that but that didn't deter him. _Spells had to come from somewhere, wizards didn't come about the same way a book of spells did._ He would have to improvise. He deciphered the Latin word for ' _breathe'_ and gave it a shot.

He fell to his knees besides her and aimed directly at her chest, praying for it to work, "Spiritus."

Nothing. He pulled at his hair and thought deeper. What did he overhear Pomfrey say when he was in the hospital wing for hitting his head the last time? He vaguely remembered her replying to a compliment from one of the Professors over her skills at healing, 'It is quite simple, really! All one needs to do is add hea-' the rest was a blur. _Why can't I remember it? Fuck!_ 'Health? Healing?'

He was running out of time. He had no choice but to try _something.._ He aimed at her chest again,

" _Curatio Spiritus!"_

A horrible choking gasp filled Hermione's lungs as she hacked away, clutching her chest in pain. Incredible, magical relief flooded through his body as he collapsed on top of her, gathering her into his arms and pulling her up. He did it. She's going to be okay. He couldn't believe how close that was. What a horribly stupid way for things to turn out and yet he was so happy it ended like this, with her in his arms alive and breathing.

She's alive, thank Godric Fucking Gryffindor. Of all his years cursed with the worst luck, he was grateful to have luck now. _It must be because it's_ _Hermione,_ he thought _._ She always made it through the worst of anything that was put in her way. It was in her nature, after all.

He spent the next hour casting healing charm after healing charm, confident in his ability to remember so many remedies beyond any other student in his year and even two years ahead of his own. First, he successfully set and healed her broken leg, that was the most obvious wound as it was painfully bent in an odd angle (which somewhat horrified him). Next was her concussion and other fractures bones here and there. He took care of the swelling under one of her eyes and even tended to the lesser cuts on her hands from hitting all those branches on her broom. She had more cuts there than he did, which showed she wasn't really much of a better flier than he was. Chasing a snitch for hours on end for each practice had paid off.

Casting the injury detection charm he had been using one last time over her, he finally determined the only thing left was to allow her to wake up naturally. He made sure to also continue checking her breathing patterns and pulse while he was at it, but who's to say it wasn't out of a bit of paranoia, considering the near death experience he managed to pull her out of in the nick of time. He also learned, during his advanced Healers Class, that 'Rennervating' a patient after having suffered a concussion was one of the worst things you could do for them. Their brains shut themselves off for a reason: So the can restart again. The time it takes for them to wake up allows them a chance to heal mentally, as well.

With a tired sigh, he lowered her head into his lap and propped himself back on his hands, and waited patiently for her to wake.

 **Hermione P.O.V.**

All she could remember was a terrible burn in her chest. She didn't know what it meant for all she could do was stay stuck in her horrible nightmare. She was locked in a small chamber that was rapidly filling with water. Everywhere she looked she could find no escape. In the middle of the room was a bright red apple but she somehow knew it was tainted with a love potion. Her chest never stopped burning all the while, a sickening pull was luring her to the apple and before she could stop herself she found it resting in her hand.

" _No, I don't want it!"_ She tried to throw it away but it stuck to her hand, never relenting. It looked so delicious, distracting her from the water pouring in from all sides of the room now. " _Can't I have a choice?_ " She whimpered.

The water was up to her neck now, her long hair was flowing all around her and suddenly _that_ song started to play again, but this time it was slower, like the slowing beat to her heart. She felt like she would die if she didn't take a bite. She caved in and took a bite. Suddenly a rush of air burst into her mouth through the apple, choking her as the bits flew into her throat, the water having completely encased the room now started to empty and she felt herself grow weak. She fell to her knees, grateful towards the sweet tasting apple as it continued to push the water out of the room. Her body felt warmer and her head spun as she laid down on the cold soft floor, the sound of her heart pounding away in her ears until she fell asleep.

Her eyes slowly fluttered open. Everything was a blur of events that lead up to this point. Someone was holding her but she couldn't see who it was. She could hardly form words with her mouth, it refused to cooperate with her mind and the flood of questions that built up, slowly being answered as bits of memory came to her in time.

"I-I'm.. alive?" Her voice sounded pretty harsh, startling Draco. He gently withdrew their embrace and studied her eyes. They seemed to be lost as her brows drew in confusion. _Did she think she died?_ He wondered, but he couldn't think much on it now. She is alive.

In a careless moment of happiness he brought her closer and kissed her forehead before cradling her head to his chest, "Yes, _Hermione._ You're alive.."

She attempted to push him away and ask questions but he stopped her by bringing his lips down onto hers in a gentle kiss. He couldn't help himself as he petted her head and kissed her again and again, this time all over her face and head and back to her lips again, muttering, "Don't ever do that to me again. You hear? I cannot lose you. Not ever.."

His lips felt so warm and passionate against her own. Her body fit into his mold so well and his words were spreading electricity through her, to her toes and back. She recognized the voice now that her senses were starting to become more clear with every passing heartbeat. It belonged to none other than Draco Malfoy and he was _kissing_ her.

She hit his arm this time, still feeling so weak and tired, but he didn't let go. She gasps for air, turning her head a little, making him pause in concern.

He firmly holds her chin and makes her face him giving her a look, "You know you want this as much as I do, _Hermione._ "

The sound of her name rolling off his lips made her melt. He could have been so much crueler when he treated her as a pet and she finally realized they were simply designed so that she would have to spend more _time_ with him, alone.

He kissed her again but very gently this time. A kiss only sweet lovers could capture. Her resistance slowly faded away as she looked back on all the endeavors they had shared throughout the years. Her hand came up willingly this time, placing it on the hand he used to cup her face. She came to an amusing determination: all of her memories with him were quickly replacing themselves with only the good ones. He made her feel.. _happy._

 **AN: Shortie but oh so much fluff! I wanted to puke rainbows, it made me _that_ happy! LOLOL. I loved creating new spells for him to perform on poor Miss Granger. Things _are_ looking up for them now, at least? I don't think a couple of biased friends would very much appreciate it if they saw what she was getting into. **

**SERIOUS QUESTION: Should I continue the story? I'm considering it but I haven't really planned much, yet. These last two chapters were pretty tough to write.. Okay all of them were in their own ways, but that's besides the point! Remember this was originally intended as a one shot, ohh, I'd say about 6 chapters ago? It's only 12:30am and I'm already seeing double. Do I even make sense anymore? BEDTIME, Oh may Gah! {I wrote three chapters today! Two for this fic and one for "Youkai's Subterfuge" my other latest fanfic based on Sesshomaru x OC, hehe!} Check out my other fics if you want! Thanks for reading,**

 **PLEASE REVIEW! Good or bad is fine! I love you either way!**


	8. Chapter 8

**I literally just made a 'cover' for this fanfic and started writing this chapter shortly after.. I think I'm crazy today.. It's 4:17am. I'm too hyped up to go to bed. I just wanna drink wine and think DRAMIONE all night (day) long. I still consider it night if I haven't gone to bed, yet, shut up. {and I'm supposed to wake up at 6:30am to get the kids ready for school.. oops}**

 **I don't own this.. I just work really hard {kind of} to put two and 9 ¾ together. Where's my wine? Oh.. I drank it.**

 **Chapter 8**

Hermione's eyes slowly lifted to a very dark Hospital Wing. Her body ached so horribly as if she had bashed herself against a tree repeatedly. Little did she know it wasn't too far from the truth. She took in her surroundings and seriously questioned why on Good Godric's name she was there. Everything since the library was remarkably blank. _Dear God, did I fall asleep in my books? I really must be so worn out to have slept this long.. OUCH._ She regretted trying to sit up right. Everything hurt. Her feet, her torso, even her face and lips felt sore. _What on earth..?_

No friends were around her, it must have been past curfew already. She had quite a few questions to ask, such as: _'Why am I here?'_ And, _'What am I wearing?'_ She certainly did not recall dressing for bed. A shiver ran up her spine at the idea of someone seeing her in her underwear. It was one of the reasons she didn't enjoy visiting the doctor for her annual exam back at home, thanks to her lovely muggle parents. Even wizards don't bare themselves so readily in front of a healer. Kids mums simply cast detecting spells of different sorts to check they were healthy from time to time. No fuss about it.

Another failed attempt at lifting herself left her a bit lower in her cot. _Damn, I'm still so weak after sleeping all day?_ The bizarre situation settled uncomfortably in her stomach. As soon as she was able to, Hermione Granger was determined to figure out exactly what happened to her.

XoXoXo

The next day, Hermione woke up feeling quite groggy and even stuffed up. _Drats, I'm coming down with something.._ But she was immediately distracted from her condition when a dear friend popped around the entrance. As soon as Luna saw her awake, she smiled slightly and strode up to her in a dreamy fashion, as usual of her demeanor.

"Hello Hermione, welcome to the world of the living. My, your head is full of so many nargles today though I expect there are much less than there were the day before yesterday when we first found you."

Hermione's eyes grew large, "WHAT..?! I've been sleeping this whole time?"

"It seems so. McGonagall seemed pretty disappointed, mentioning 'Lessoning your burden a bit.' Do you know what she meant? It seems a bit funny.." She started to daze off as she recounted finding her knocked out and face first in one of the many books she had piled around her person.

Hermione blushed in shame, "Oh.. it's nothing, really. She knows how much I like to study. I must have overdone it to have slept such a long time. Have you seen Harry or R-" Just as she started to ask about them Ron walked in.

"'Mione, you're awake! It's about time, we were starting to worry."

"Yes, Ronald, I know."

"How did y-"

Before he could ask, Hermione cut him off, "BEFORE you ask, all I know is I was studying. I don't even recall falling asleep, but no worries. Madam Pomfrey should let me out soon enough so I can get right back to it! Goodness knows how far behind I am now.. I don't even remember what I was studying, what a _waste._ " To this, Ron just stared at her dumbfounded.

"Where's Harry?" She asked.

"Oh.. eh, he wanted to come, I swear. Hooch threatened him with detention with Filch if he missed anymore practice."

"Well, that's understandable. I don't know anyone who would enjoy his company." Luna declared but then had to add, "Except nargles.. They love his atmosphere for some reason. I'm almost jealous.." Her words trailed off before she awkwardly left the room, leaving two confused looking Gryfindor students to stare at her back.

"She just never stops getting weirder.." Ron mused to which Hermione nodded in agreement.

Ron left not long after Luna, after saying their goodbyes as Lupin walked in. He looked worse for wear today and Hermione had a sneaking suspicion she knew why but kept it to herself.

"Ah, good to see you're awake Miss Granger."

"Hello, Professor." She greeted, not moving from the bed since Ron had already helped prop her up.

He offered her something he held, "Here, have some chocolate, it will help you feel better." He knew it helped after dealing with the Dementors however it always helped girls feel better anytime. She gratefully took the chocolate square and nibbled on it when he continued, "Harry says you have been pushing yourself too hard. Could it be your extra courses?"

She nearly choked, "Oh, so you know about that.."

"Yes, it is no mystery among us teachers. You're the first student to prove more than capable for, should I say, reliving the magic in your years at school." He directed an all knowing smile under his messy hair at her. It was no riddle to what he was referring to, as she saw right through it. "I hope it hasn't been to great a burden on you. I may inform McGonagall on your behalf if it is."

"It isn't..!" She blurted. "I feel fine, I just need to get more sleep, is all. It takes some getting used to but I'll be alright." Her cheeks grew pink at being so forward. She hoped she didn't sound too desperate. "Anyway, I have already spoken with the headmaster about dropping a few classes." She fiddled with her hands in her lap while she said the last part.

"Good! Then I'll only speak to McGonagall in support of your decision, however I am obligated to remind you that your activities with your.. _necklace_ , will remain strictly for educational use." He insisted lightly.

"Yes, Professor." She nodded with a small smile, however the mention of using a Time Turner outside of academic use sparked a deeper interest within her. An interest she shoved to the back of her mind as an avid rule-follower.

He left with his hands in the pockets of his tweed jacket, feeling relieved since he knew Miss Granger was a very sincere person. What he didn't know was that a certain Slytherin boy's sneaky ways was starting to make an influence on her. She pulled out the long necklace from under her night dress and contemplated the future.. as well as the past.

XoXoXo

Draco was finding it difficult to sleep through another night without visiting Hermione. He felt extremely guilty she hadn't woken up yet. He felt even more guilty as he was the cause of her being that way. He wanted to check on her to see if there were any signs showing of her recent traumatic experience but he never got the chance. She always had some friend or Professor visiting her so the most he could do was pass by on a long route to class. To visit her outright would have been very suspicious since everyone saw them as rivals.

It frustrated and worried him to no end. When it was still the weekend and she was nearly comatose he was forced to go back to the Manor to spend time with his father who mostly reprimanded him for mistakes or grades that were less than perfect. The rest of the time his band mates would be there for them to practice for an upcoming show they scheduled in a prestigious pure blood town pub. There were Zack, the drummer, Cameron the bassist, and of course Derek, the stuck up lead singer. He liked to push for extensive rehearsals which would have provided an excellent way to vent his frustrations yet they failed to distract him, knowing his band had one particular fan.. the source of his distractions in the first place. He eventually snapped and yelled at his mates for criticizing his lack of effort, making them leave the manor until he was in his right mind again. It would take a while.

He wanted to yell and break everything but remembering he already had broken _her_ took the motivation right out of him. Fortunately no one knew and would never find out, he went the extra mile to make sure of it. He had a reputation for being a bully but something this extreme would have gotten him kicked out of school without question. He couldn't afford that. His father would surely kill him.

He spent the remainder of the weekend in the manor reflecting on what the muggle born was to him. _Why did I take it so far? It was supposed to be a bit of a fun prank._ He ran his fingers through his disheveled hair again then laid back on his grand bed fitted with black satin sheets. Staring up at the high ceiling his thoughts wandered over every moment he could remember of _her._ She was always beautiful, even when her hair was wild and unruly. He kept his thoughts to himself, being too proud of his heritage at first but she broke down his walls over time without even lifting a finger. She was quite a nervous little thing in first year and he resented her for that but then she grew in confidence and beauty right before his eyes. Next thing you know he couldn't stop his thoughts from straying and his heart ached in jealousy for her friends who got so much more of her than he could even want. Then it happened, she punched him! That little fireball had it in her, to his surprise and of all the reactions he could have he just had to run off like a scared little shit. _Ugh…_ That was a dreadful memory he wished to never think about again. His father would be very disappointed if he saw his son run off like a bitch with her tail between her legs.

The weekend dragged on and he expected her to have woken up by now but she hadn't. From what he spied, he saw she was still very much NOT awake. The guilt built up tenfold. He was about to sneak up to her and cast a very difficult spell, he had researched in the vast library at his Manor, that would detect any unnoticeable injuries but before he could she started to groan. He felt relieved at first but the guilt never relented when he saw how rough she looked. It seemed her recovery was still a long ways to go.

XoXoXo

She hated herself for it but Hermione finally made up her mind. None of her friends or Professors believed she was anywhere besides the library before she mysteriously passed out but she knew better. She believed there was more to the story and before she went and did anything crazy she had one person she needed to speak to. _Draco Malfoy._ He didn't visit her during her entire stay in the Hospital Wing and she had a firm belief that he must have known why.. or maybe had something to do with it.

She was discharged and allowed to go back to her regular classes and activities, as long as she took it easy. She didn't have time for going easy so she conjured a few replenishing potions for herself to take as she continued her extended courses, seeking out Draco in any of the classes they shared. To her dismay, she couldn't find him in any of them! _Is he avoiding me?!_ He looked even more guilty to her now, in turn peaking her suspicions of him even more so. _He must know something.._

It was no good. He wasn't anywhere! She sighed in frustration over lunch, making her friends question what was wrong with her this time.

"Now, what's the matter?" Asked Ron impatiently.

"Never you mind, Ronald. I just have a bit of a headache. I think I'll turn in early tonight."

"What about the exams next week?" Harry asked wearily. "Don't you want to study for them?"

"Right! You always carry on about exams even months ahead." Ron prodded.

"Ugh, I'll be fine!" She yelled, startling the students around them. She kept her gaze towards her friends in annoyance before standing up and excusing herself halfway through her meal. "I already finished studying for those weeks ago. In fact, I'm ahead of all the classes by at least a few weeks, I could take the exams in my sleep. Bye." She left them without waiting for their response.

"Somethings mad about her." Ron gulped.

"Yeah.." Harry stared in the direction she left, worrying for his friend.

Hermione made quick strides to Hagrid's hut. It was still a little chilly out and she contemplated turning around when she saw the Quiddich field from afar. A sudden lost memory rose up and a strange feeling of foreboding glanced across her mind. _What was that about?_

She changed course and headed towards the field instead, intent on finding out more. When she got there she saw something very strange. The broom closet doors had been destroyed. _Who would do such a thing?_ There was a bit of parchment magically attached to the front of the closet which she took down to read.

' _To whomever found it amusing to destroy this here broom closet last Saturday morning, WE WILL FIND YOU. You will be punished accordingly, including fined for damage of school property AND will be held responsible for repairing it. If that seems like no matter to you, then let you be reminded that this broom closet has been with Hogwarts since before your grandparents attended this school and was a gift passed down from Rowena Ravenclaw herself. To replace the doors will come at no small cost.'_ Signed Madam Hooch.

Hermione hesitated. She felt.. like she knew how this happened. It said the vandalism occurred Saturday morning. The same morning where her memories became strangely afflicted. _I couldn't have been the one to damage this.._ She deduced. Was it someone she knew? She had a feeling the incident involved her but not knowing _how_ or _why_ was starting to drive her up the wall. Her heat was beating fast now. _There is only one way to find out._

She walked over the field and found herself a decent hiding place in the beams, where she thought no one would notice her while it gave her a perfect view of the broom closet. She slowly pulled on the chain around her neck until she dragged out the small round pendant that circled a miniature hour glass. _Two days ago.._ She counted back, matching turn after turn on the dial. It was crazy stupid to go back this far. She didn't even think this turner had the ability and it was incredibly risky but she promised herself (and secretly to Professor McGonagall) that she would _not_ interfere. Only spectate. She hated not know her own whereabouts and desperately needed the answers. Time stilled, then clouds drifted backwards, flying across the sky at breakneck speed. Students passed in waves, birds perched then rocketed back where they came from. She noticed the cluster of students around a very upset Madach Hooch un-posting the notice upon the broom closet. Then she saw _him._ Holding a black Nimbus in an outstretched hand where the broom flew back into the closet, simultaneously fixing the doors to the closet in the process. What she saw next happened to fast, but when she realized who she saw, her heart froze in her throat.

 **AN: Bet you didn't see THAT one coming, eh?! Hermione is breaking rules and taking a very dangerous step by herself. She really has gone off the deep end this time, and not just for the sake of her studies, oooh-hoo-hooo! Hahaha, yosh! I love that she's in turmoil with herself. She's such a goody two-shoes, but Draco is turning her for the worst.. or the better? I'll let you decide. {snickers to self}**

 **I already have the next chapter planned out! This is record breaking for me, who knew I could stick to a story and still love writing it! THANKS TO MY FOLLOWERS and _especially_ MY REVIEWERS! You guys rock and keep me wanting to post more. OH, did you like the cover I made for this story? I loved making it. Notice the pink glowing line leading to Hermione? I thought it was a nice touch since Draco used a tracking spell on her and that line looks exactly like I imagined it! **

**PLEASE REVIEW! It's the fuel to the fire in MyDarkness (kekeke) {yes, I have dark thoughts when it comes to my favorite character pairings, hence the username}**


	9. Chapter 9

**I just realized I've been labeling most of my chapters on my computer as 'DPN' instead of 'DNP' for Draco's New Pet.. See, I told you I'm always tired. I could just lie and say it's a rough translation from French but honestly my French is SHIT.. Pardon my French. ON with the story!**

 **I own nada**

 **Chapter 9**

Time slowed to a stop and then resumed at normal speed as if nothing had ever happened yet, to show an empty field before her. She overstepped by one turn, so that meant she had to wait an hour. She didn't care because what she had already seen shocked her quite thoroughly. Her suspicions were correct, she _was_ involved with broom closet vandalism even if it were indirectly. Her mind worked furiously trying to prepare herself for what she was about to witness. It happened rather fast, and in slow motion at that, but she did recognize herself for a moment after she somehow arrived in a blur, all in backwards motion. It was something she still couldn't get used to and usually didn't pay attention to since it usually made her dizzy enough to get sick. This time, she stood with rapt attention when the figures, _their figures,_ appeared. All would be answered in good time.. _In good time._

After not enough mental prep in the hour she surged past herself through time, the hour came. She willed herself to not panic when she saw a black hooded figure enter the field and immediately take to hiding. She counted her blessings she chose this hiding place that was far out of his range. She already figured who the mysterious figure was, but _why keep himself shroud in black like that?_ She didn't have any more time to dwell on her thoughts when she saw another student with brown curls bouncing off her shoulders in the distance, coming their way. She looked worried. _I look worried._ She corrected herself. It was strange referring to herself in third person.

Another person soon followed after her and climbed into the rafters to spy on their conversation. There were now two spies? This just keeps getting more weird but she couldn't tear her eyes off her.. the _other her_ 's face. She was looking around nearly frantic as the cloaked figure walked behind her, silently towards the entrance, successfully blocking her way out. She turned to leave only to collide into him. _If only I had the Weasley's Extendable Ears,_ she struggled to hear what they were saying, she was too far away. She watched helplessly as he stopped her from leaving on purpose, making the current Hermione gasp as she saw him pin her to the wall with his arms on either side of her, and loomed ominously close. _This better not lead where I think it's going._ She fumed to herself, noticing she wasn't the only one to have reacted from seeing this. Her eyes darted to the other spy, who caught himself from nearly falling and exposing himself to the pair. Luckily for them, they were too occupied in a heated conversation to have heard.

As Draco angled himself capture her, the present Hermione clutched at her wand in her pocket threateningly. She promised to not get involved but she needed to stop what was about to happen. _Draco is about to kiss me?!_ She slowly drew out her wand to point it in Malfoy's direction, slightly scared at the repercussions that was about to unfold if she chose to act when the other spy acted instead. She instantly recognized Neville as he threw a simple hex at Draco. Poor kid didn't know very good dueling spells but she silently praised him for his efforts that seemed to work, if only momentarily. She saw herself running away just then, grabbing a broom and turned to look back for a second and paused. _Shite!_ She stepped back behind a support beam just barely in time before she nearly exposed herself when she was about to hex Malfoy. _Be more careful!_ She warned herself, feeling an adrenaline rush. Her heart was beating so hard through her chest she thought for a moment it might explode.

The other Hermione was immediately distracted by Draco sending an astute counter spell at Neville, effectively knocking him off the rafters, falling knocked out cold to the ground. In a way, Neville saved her _two_ times, now. She took a mental note to thank him later with a basket of chocolate frogs. If she doesn't murder Malfoy in the process. There's still no explanation why her body ached so bad when she woke up in that hospital bed and she dreaded to find out why. _There's no turning back now._

Her past self had already taken off on an old broom and then she witnessed Draco flick his wand, sending chunks of the closet door flying every which way, as his broom flew into his hand. He said something but she couldn't hear any of it again. In a way she felt grateful because anything he says by now would surely have made her lose what little lunch she ate earlier. Her stomach was still not used to eating so much since she took a few days to sleep. After Draco flew towards the castle, Hermione ran towards Neville to check if he wasn't too hurt. She didn't even think to ask him if he knew anything. He never mentioned it. Then again, he probably thought she had remembered these events, which would explain why he didn't say anything. She felt bad she hadn't the faintest idea or she would have thanked him a while ago. She saw he was still breathing and muttered, 'Sorry Neville, but I can't stay here.' She then took off towards the broom closet, cursing to herself in the meantime for even thinking of using a broom when she could have used her wand against Malfoy. _What was she.._ I _, thinking?_

The closet had tons of old worn out brooms but wouldn't do her any good if she were to catch up with Malfoy so she looked towards the other damaged door that concealed the newest Slytherin brooms, kept separate from the rest of the houses. _Typical._ She grabbed one closest to her and mounted it. _I can do this.._ She kicked off the ground hard and went bolting towards the castle in the direction she last saw herself and Malfoy flee towards. It took everything in her will power not to scream at the horribly fast flight of the sleek broom, she felt like she would die of fright!

Flying high overhead so as to not be seen, doing her best to remain calm and focused on finding her past self, Hermione searched the castle grounds and then stopped herself. If she really thought about it, the old Hermione _would_ have gone there but seeing as how Draco had a much faster broom he probably beat her there. In that case, she would have gone in a new direction. One she would try and use to her advantage to keep Malfoy at bay long enough for her to escape.. _THERE!_ She could barely see herself dive head first into the trees, Draco hot on her heels. The current Hermione bolted forth, towards the Forbidden Forest, lowering herself to the broom stick for a better grip.

She was now flying over and just behind Draco, who would have guessed there would be someone pursuing the pursuer. She carefully drew out her wand and cast a slowing charm on his broom, not being able to help herself. There was no way she could allow him to catch her here, in the middle of nowhere. Now that she thought of it from this view, it was a terrible idea to draw him out here, thinking she could prey on his fears of the forest. He's grown a lot bolder over time since she last recalled. Even just recently. Maybe this is his idea of payback? _Dear God, is that why I woke up sore? Is he about to beat me up?_ She had no time to think further on this as she could hear him curse at his broom. _Serves the bastard right._

Suddenly, she had to swerve and then stop very hard to avoid getting caught as she realized he was slowing down tremendously. She looked at her wand then at his broom. _No, she didn't have his broom magically linked to my wand, so why is he stopping?_ Her question was answered shortly when he got off and placed his broom against the tree only to pull out his wand a cast a tracking spell. _The clever git, so you were only pretending to sleep during that class._ She couldn't stop herself as she lowered herself to the tree tops as quietly as she could, performing a quick spell under her breath towards the space in front of him, sending a strong breeze to hopefully counter the tracking spell. His cloak fluttered mercilessly about him, showing off the shape of his broad shoulders and narrow hips, making the current Hermione's cheeks go up a few tints in color. His body was steadily growing to accommodate a very masculine figure, she noticed before chastising herself for looking.

He drew alarmingly close, Hermione could see the electric pink line, symbolizing what scent the spell was tracking, swerve side to side in the breeze as the ending point stayed pointing directly towards his target. She sent another spell, a harmless sticking charm, at Malfoy's feet yet in that precise moment the past Hermione leapt up from behind the bushes, making the present Hermione jump really bad, instead throwing the charm off in the direction of her past self.

 _NO!_ She inwardly screamed. Luckily, only her cloak got stuck to the bushes, so she threw them off before jumping on that blasted old broom and broke through the tree tops. The present Hermione watched in horror as the past one shot straight up into the sky. She could only watch as she held her breath, wondering what on earth she was going to do now. She couldn't very well fly up there with them, she would be easily discovered. She already intervened too much, it was very risky to do anymore yet all the same she felt that maybe she was meant to be there. It could have gone a lot worse. She waited in fear from the tops of the trees, clutching her broom with a white knuckled death grip as she watched the pair fly higher than she ever thought she could go.

Then it happened. Her past self slipped from her broom, barreling into Draco who then tried to catch her as she fell. Something seemed wrong, _why am I so limp? I could have at least made to grab back at him.. unless.._

" _NO!"_ Draco yelled, angling himself to fly after her falling form.

The current Hermione panicked, looking around. _This will not end well._ She flew down and took in her surroundings. Below her falling form, beneath the soft canopy of leaves, stood multiple large jagged rocks you would find similar to that at the edge of a cliff. Hermione knew she wasn't going to die, but maybe that's what she was here for _now._ She whipped out her wand and started casting the strongest pushing charms she could think of. To her relief the boulders moved however slowly. She had to think of something else. She looked up in shock to see herself hit the top of the trees, the sounds of bones breaking made her stomach lurch. She cast spells at the lower branches, slightly cracking them, hoping they would help break her fall, rather than break all her bones.

She wretched herself away to hide just in time to see Malfoy catch her old self around the middle and sent them both on the broom parallel to the ground. He barely managed to do so and shortly after they were both sent tumbling along the earthen floor, gathering leaves and bits off moss on their clothes and hair, his wand flew out from his pocket landing by her feet. She saw how Malfoy never let her go and used his arms to hold her close, protecting her from the fall. Her heart was still madly pounding as she silently watched. She never knew him to be so protective, let alone over someone like her. She thought she was just his toy but now she could see she meant so much more to him.

The current Hermione was still rooted to her spot as she continued to watch, thinking since she was alive now then surely she had survived the fall. Until Draco, knees to the ground and bent over her started crying out. He started kissing her, then pushed on her chest, the kissed her again. _Oh, he knows CPR? Wait.._ Her mouth dropped open, _am I not breathing?_ It was gut wrenching to watch him try again and again to no avail. His head drooped in defeat. _Holy fuck, I'm going to die if I don't do something!_

But Draco already began to form a plan. He reached in his pocket for his wand. _His wand!_ She slightly jumped looking to her hand that was holding his wand. He promptly stood, keeping Hermione planted where she was- out of sight, and searched all over for his wand, reaching his hand out. He closed his eyes and tried to feel for it. Hermione decided that, whatever he was going to do, she would trust him. She flung the wand towards him with good aim and it flew into his outstretched hand. He turned back to the dying Hermione on the ground and muttered some spell she never heard before. It didn't work. He grabbed at his hair and muttered panicky to himself before he calmed and tried again. She let out a long sigh of relief as she saw herself gasping and choking on air while Draco unceremoniously kissed her all over telling her to never do that again.

Hermione didn't know what to make of the scene. First she was furious at Malfoy for putting her through that then she was even more furious at herself for apparently forgetting her wand, explaining why she didn't use magic to fend her way out, then she felt the worst fear in her life as she watched herself literally die. Next thing you know, she's alive and being gently snogged by the person who put her in the predicament to begin with! But watching him hold her that way.. rocking back and forth as he cried. It was like seeing a parent holding a dying child, he was _that_ passionate about it. It hit a certain soft spot within her. Looking back she realized he only intended to give her a kiss. _Had I overreacted?_ It wasn't like getting kissed by Malfoy was the worst thing in the world to have happened. Seeing the way he fought to save her, was devastated by not catching her as she fell in the sky, watching the way he treated all her wounds large and small, and seeing him holding her now. She could see just how much he cared. Maybe she could find it in her heart to forgive him after all.

She continued to watch him as night fell and he wrapped his cloak around her. She began to stir and he held her tighter in his arms. _Wasn't he afraid of the Forbidden Forest after nightfall?_ Suddenly, the past Hermione began to lift her eyes. They seemed to gaze at nothing as she whispered something only Malfoy could hear but his reply she heard well enough to discern what she had said, "Yes, _Hermione. Y_ ou're alive.." He said as a genuine smile graced his features. She's never seen him make that face before. It was, for lack of a better word, charming.

 _What is he doing, just sitting there? Doesn't he know they should head back soon? I mean, look at me! I need a real bed and rest, not sappy romance!_ She had enough, damn all the rules. Hermione stepped out from her hiding place, in favor of moving the little party indoors, as she carefully walked towards Draco, relieved her past self had fallen asleep again. Or passed out.. they both worked just as well. As her figure was revealed in the glow on the moonlight, Draco looked up and froze.

His eyes grew wider and then back to the Hermione in his arms and shook her saying, "Hermione, no.. You can't be dead!"

"Oh, CUT IT, Malfoy. I'm not dead, you prat!" He looked up at her as she moved closer and crouched down. She realized something as she pushed the hair away from her past self's face. There was a reason for her coming back in time.. _I know what I must do now._ She took out her wand and aimed it at her past self. " _Obliviate.._ " A light shone from her wand and then it was gone.

Malfoy stared first at one Hermione then at the other one, first confused but then it dawned on him. "You were following us the whole time weren't you?" He said, with uncertainty lining his voice.

"Yes. I had to be sure what had happened. I don't even know how things turned up this way or why I 'obliviated' myself only to come back and figure out what happened in the first place.. but in a sense, I can see why."

"You have a Time Turner.." He mused, no sign of the smirking Draco she was so used to by now.

"Yes.. I had to be sure. But now that I saw things from _this_ perspective, I have a complete change of mind about you."

He lifted his brows for her to continue.

"Well," She played with the wand in her hands, "I always thought you were a stuck up prick with nothing better to do than to torment others who made you feel inadequate."

"OUCH, thanks, Granger."

"BUT.." She drew out, hesitating a pinch, "Now I see you for who you are."

"And how do you see me?" He asked, honestly curious.

"Y-you're smart. Very fast.. I had to slow you down a little." She laughed.

"That was you?"

"Don't interrupt," Her cheeks began to turn bright pink, "You're also a lot more brave than I thought you were, which was most likely why I flew here.. And you care. Actually quite a bit more than I had thought." She sat a little closer to him to reach the cloak around her past self better.

Her proximity didn't slip past his notice. "What else?"

"What else?" _What more does he want me to say? "_ Y-you're.. tall.."

He huffed a short laugh, " _What else?"_ He inched closer when she wasn't looking.

"I suppose I do find you rather.. h-handsome." She turned her head towards him as he closed the distance in a heartbeat, pressing their lips together in a gentle caress. Hermione's heart fluttered as she soon found herself returning the sweet kiss back.

 **(I mean, hello, Draco's kissing the future Hermione while the past Hermione blissfully naps on his lap. How is that not weird? LOLOLOL) I hope I didn't screw things up too much. There's a lot to keep track of when doing a Time Turner scene! And I'm a Time Turner Scene viiiiirgin. Draco wouldn't have obliviated her though that's what future Hermione was expecting when she realized it was her who was supposed to do that. I don't even know if it's possible to cast obliviate on yourself but I'm assuming you can because I forget shit like ALL the time. What can I say, I'm my own worst enemy sometimes. OH, btw, TWO chaps again, guys! Woot Woot!**

 **PLEASE REVIEW to make me feel less alone in the Dramione world! I'm like a Shinigami of reviews. More reviews= the longer I survive on fanfiction. Tha wass a.. bit a Death Note ther fer yeh, if yeh hedn't noticed. I WOULD write a Death Note fanfic but there's so much stuff involved and to capture TWO genius' finess without sounding like an idiot is not something I would excel at, in this point in time. {Though I imagine a lot of L shower scenes more often than I care to admit.. which I did just now anyway}**

 **Thank you to all my followers and reviewers who do actually follow and review, it means so much to me! XOXOXOXO ~MyDarkness**


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